HARPER WOODS, Mich. (WXYZ) — A Harper Woods High School administrator is facing criminal sexual conduct charges after police say he assaulted a custodian inside the school.
Kyohn Burton, 55, the dean of discipline at Harper Woods High School, is now facing fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct charges. Burton appeared before a judge for the first time in the case at 32-A District Court.
Watch Carli Petrus' report below:
Police say the incident happened Wednesday, Oct. 28, inside the Harper Woods High School teacher's lounge. The victim, a 30-year-old custodian who normally works at Beacon Elementary, was at the high school for a catered event.
Investigators say Burton approached the woman while she was standing near the microwave.
"Burton approached her, grabbed her inner thigh area near her vagina and then leaned in and stated, 'give me some of that [explicit], you know you want to,'" a Harper Woods Police Department Detective said.
Police say Burton then grabbed the woman and pulled her into his office.
"Burton then grabs her by the left arm, drags her through the teacher's lounge, into his office. When her and Burton make it into his office, he again states, 'give me some of that [explicit],' while still holding the back of her neck," the Detective said.
Police say Burton blocked the office door, preventing the woman from leaving. But another custodian witnessed part of the encounter and police say she helped the woman get out.
"[Victim] explained to her, and secretly said save me, so, she was able to get him out of the office," the Detective said.
Detectives say they also recovered school security footage that caught parts of the incident.
"Clip one shows Burton pulling [victim] through the lounge as she described. Clip number two shows, from the outside lunchroom looking into kind of where the office is, her being forced into Mr. Burton's office, and then, clip three shows [victim] entering back into the teacher's lounge but appeared visibly distraught," the Detective said.
Burton was arrested Thursday and arraigned the following day in 32-A District Court.
"My client is 55-year-old, he has no prior record, he's been working in the school systems for over 27 years. He is married," Burton's attorney said.
The judge found probable cause for the charge and set Burton's bond at $25,000 personal.
"Alright, upon examination of the complaining witness, I find that the charge was committed and that there is probable cause," Judge Rebekah R. Coleman said.
Burton has worked for the Harper Woods School District since 2019 and also served as an assistant boys basketball coach. Before that, he worked for Detroit Public Schools. The district says Burton resigned in 2019 and it has no record of any disciplinary action or complaints involving him during his employment.
The Harper Woods School District says it's conducting an internal investigation. The district declined to comment further.
Burton is due back in court Nov. 18 for a probable cause hearing.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
