A former Palm Beach County teacher and high school basketball coach, Charles Keith Mackrey, has been arrested on allegations of grooming and inappropriately touching a student over a two-year period. Mackrey was charged with soliciting or engaging in a romantic relationship with a student, a felony offense in Florida. This week's arrest follows the student's initial report of the abuse nearly a year ago, which adds another troubling layer to the issue, as the case had earlier been closed by the Department of Children and Families (DCF), as reported by CBS12 News.
The incidents reportedly began in 2022 when the student was in Mackrey's course recovery class at Olympic Heights Community High School in Boca Raton, the affidavit details flirtatious messages, tight hugs, and late-night FaceTime calls that marked the illicit interaction. Additionally, Mackrey is said to have told the student to delete messages after his wife saw them, threatening her with potential jail time, according to a statement obtained by CBS12 News. These claims were followed up by an explicit warning from Mackrey that if she did not comply, "you'll go to jail" or "get in trouble."
Despite reporting the allegations to the assistant principal and a school district police officer, who notified DCF and began a criminal investigation. The DCF closed its investigation related to the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation without further action. A follow-up interview revealed the victim withheld some details in earlier conversations with DCF because "it seemed like they didn’t care," leading her to feel discouraged from disclosing the full extent of the abuse, as she told detectives, in a report by CBS12 News.
With Mackrey's arrest, the investigation has brought multiple agencies into the fold, including the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, the Florida Department of Children and Families, and the State Attorney’s Office. Mackrey also lists himself as co-owner of a youth basketball training program with participants as young as 8 years old. His alleged proximity to young athletes has raised additional concerns, given the serious nature of the charges against him. This aspect of the case was also mentioned in a report from WPBF. Mackrey is currently being held on a $20,000 bond, with the legal process continuing to unfold.
The gravity of these allegations has again ignited conversations around the mechanisms for reporting and investigating claims of sexual abuse within educational institutions. In a letter sent to families, Olympic Heights Principal Kelly Mills Burke emphasized the school's commitment to student safety: "The safety and well-being of our students is my highest priority," according to a statement obtained by CBS12 News. As the case continues to unfold, updates are expected to provide more insight into the actions taken by both educational and protective agencies in response to the student's report.
