School Fires Georgia Teacher Who Allegedly Threatened to Behead Student over Israeli Flag Comments
Several other students, teachers, and staff members witnessed the alleged threats against the 13-year-old girl.
(Photo: sasun Bughdaryan, Adobe Stock)
WARNER ROBINS, Ga. – A Georgia middle school teacher is no longer working at Warner Robins Middle School after he allegedly threatened to cut off the head of a student who objected to him flying the Israeli flag in his classroom.
Benjamin Reese, 51, a seventh grade social studies teacher, was arrested December 8 after several witnesses told police they overheard him shouting expletives around students and threatening to behead a 13-year-old student, reports WMAZ.
The outburst, which occurred the day before, was allegedly prompted when a student, who was referring to the current Israel/Hamas conflict, told Reese she found the flag offensive because Israelis were killing Palestinians, reports Fox5 Atlanta. Reese told the student she was being antisemitic.
Additionally, according to WMAZ, Reese specifically said:
“You motherf*****g piece of s**t! I’ll kick your a**. I should cut your motherf*****g head off.”
Witnesses also said they heard him threaten “he would kick her f*****g a**, slit her god***n throat and drag her a** outside and cut her head off.”
The witnesses who saw the incident included other teachers, staff members, and students.
Reese faces charges of making terroristic threats and cruelty to children in the third degree, reports CNN. The school also immediately barred him from campus. He’s currently out on $7,500 bond.
Additionally, he may have his teaching certification suspended or revoked.
The parents of the 13-year-old who was threatened, Lina and Alaa Afifi, acknowledged that swift action was taken by school officials after Reese’s threats to their daughter. However, they said the school did not tell them the full extent of the threats made by him. Instead, they learned the details from the media, reports WSB. They said that Reese came very close to her during the incident.
The girl’s parents said they want to be fully informed by campus officials when their child is threatened.
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Robin Hattersley, Editor-in-Chief
Robin has been covering the security and campus law enforcement industries since 1998 and is a specialist in school, university and hospital security, public safety and emergency management, as well as emerging technologies and systems integration. She joined CS in 2005 and has authored award-winning editorial on campus law enforcement and security funding, officer recruitment and retention, access control, IP video, network integration, event management, crime trends, the Clery Act, Title IX compliance, sexual assault, dating abuse, emergency communications, incident management software and more. Robin has been featured on national and local media outlets and was formerly associate editor for the trade publication Security Sales & Integration. She obtained her undergraduate degree in history from California State University, Long Beach.
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Middle Ga is known for it’s racist and expressing hate towards Muslims, Arabs, Middle Eastern people in general long before Oct 7th. They attack which isn’t talked about, they go to businesses harassing them, in grocery stores, neighborhoods. I have been a witness to it in Warner Robins and the police ignore you. I’m guessing years of politicians programming it in people’s minds that they are all terrorists they feel they can verbally and physically hurt others. This child who simply stated how she felt about his flag in a American school he thinks it’s okay to threaten her instead of being an adult a teacher but instead shows his terroristic behavior like what is happening in Palestine. Being released on $7500.00 bond is a slap in the face.
The teacher should be aware of what they are saying at all times. Especially to young students. This teacher went overboard and should be punished to the utmost of the law.