The man was wearing a mask, hood and glasses when he boarded a Fredericksburg city school bus bound for James Monroe High on Friday morning. He sat in the back, drawing suspicion from the driver and students alike, school officials would later say.
Jordan Cromes of Spotsylvania, 32, is now facing several charges after he allegedly boarded the bus and assaulted a school staff member after being denied entry to the building at JM.
FCPS Deputy Superintendent Matt Eberhardt told the Free Press that the man boarded at Forest Village, an apartment complex off Fall Hill Avenue near Mary Washington Hospital.
Cromes was “on the bus for five minutes,” Eberhardt wrote in a text message. The bus driver, added Eberhardt, “was maybe not paying as much attention as he should’ve been.”
According to a release from the Fredericksburg Police Department, officers responded to the school and arrested Cromes around 8 a.m. He faces the following charges:
• 18.2-119 Trespassing, 2 counts (Misdemeanor)
• 18.2-415 Disorderly Conduct (Misdemeanor)
• 18.2-57 Assault (Misdemeanor)
• 18.2-422 Mask in Public (Felony)
Court records for Cromes in Spotsylvania County show two charges, intoxication in public and trespassing after forbidden.
In an ultimately-unrelated, if untimely development, school officials discovered an open door at JM Friday morning, prompting police to conduct a full search of the building “in an abundance of caution,” Eberhardt said.
Nothing was found, according to a statement from FCPS, which also emphasized that everyone remained safe throughout the incident.
Eberhardt said the division is planning to install ID readers on buses and at school entrances to prevent future incidents.
“We’re moving forward with that, and have been for at least a couple of months,” Eberhardt said. “But this accelerated our desire to move ahead with it.”
(This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.)
