A Palm Bay pastor and private school principal was taken into custody Monday afternoon, accused of inappropriately touching a student last year.
- Samuel Vidal Jr. was arrested Wednesday in Palm Bay
- He's accused of fondling teen at Restoration Christian Academy last year
- Pastor had set up a new school; police looking for more victims
Palm Bay Police said they've been looking into Samuel Vidal Jr. for the past 10 months.
They said Vidal, the pastor and principal of what was then Restoration Christian School in Palm Bay, fondled a 15-year-old girl attending the school in April 2016.
That student reported the incident to her father, who told police right away, but it took police several months to gather evidence.
They said finally they were able to get DNA evidence to build their case. Now, they want to get the information out to see whether there are others with whom he might have had inappropriate contact.
“It’s horrible. One victim is too much, and we don’t want to see any more victims," said Lt. Mike Bandish with Palm Bay Police. "But if there are, we’ll follow up on those cases.”
Restoration Christian no longer exists, but investigators said Vidal had started up a new private school called Overcomers Academy in Palm Bay.
Anyone who thinks their child might have had inappropriate contact with Vidal is asked to call Palm Bay Police.