An MSAD 72 elementary school student being transported to an out-of-district placement by a substitute van driver went missing for several hours Wednesday, prompting a police search before she was ultimately located safe.
District officials called the incident “deeply concerning” and said the transportation company involved will no longer be used.
MSAD 72 serves Fryeburg, Denmark, Sweden, Lovell, Stoneham and Stow, as well as Chatham, New Hampshire.
According to a post the girl’s mother made on a private Facebook page, her special-needs child disappeared for roughly six hours while en route to her placement school in the Augusta area. She wrote that she learned of the problem when the receiving school notified her that her daughter had not arrived.
The mother said she, the district and the out-of-district school all filed police reports, and that the Oxford County Sheriff’s Office opened a missing-child investigation about an hour later.
Superintendent Jay Robinson said the district was alerted that the student did not reach her scheduled destination and immediately began contacting the transportation provider and law enforcement. The girl was eventually located in Monmouth around noon, where Pineview Learning Center is located.
Robinson said it was “distressing” when the van could not be accounted for and when attempts to reach the driver failed. He said the district will stop using the company. The substitute driver had been contracted through First Student Bus Co.
The mother said the regular driver had canceled and a substitute arrived more than an hour late. She said her daughter, expected in Monmouth at 9:10 a.m., was instead found in Lewiston. She also provided a photo of the driver’s Maine license, which lists 256 Bartlett Street in Lewiston which is the address of Maine Immigrant and Refugee Services (MEIRS).
MEIRS, a long-established nonprofit assisting immigrants and refugees across Lewiston-Auburn, has in recent years drawn increased public scrutiny after a series of public safety concerns surfaced in its surrounding neighborhood.
Police logs and city records show repeated responses to shootings, assaults and disturbances in the immediate area of 256 Bartlett Street. Officials have described that section of Bartlett Street as one of Lewiston’s most troubled corridors, with frequent gunfire and repeated calls for service.
While MEIRS operates out of the address, it is not a residential building. The listing of 256 Bartlett Street as the driver’s home address raises additional questions because the location is a nonprofit service center, not a housing facility. Public records and nonprofit disclosures indicate MEIRS provides case management, community programs and support services, but does not maintain residential units.
Why a non-English-speaking substitute driver would be registered at that address remains unclear, and district officials did not comment on the discrepancy.
The same area recently appeared in another high-profile case involving Lewiston officials. Embattled Lewiston School Committee member and City Councilor-elect Iman Osman, who was indicted Wednesday on gun-related charges, reported in November that his firearm had been stolen from his unlocked vehicle near 256 Bartlett Street.
First Student said in an email that the substitute driver lost GPS and cellphone connection, leading to a loss of communication. The company said the vehicle had been stuck behind heavy highway traffic for several hours and noted that all its drivers undergo required background checks and meet state and federal standards.
The mother said her daughter ultimately arrived at school around 1 p.m. She said police began their search around 11 a.m., though she was unsure when the driver and van were located in Lewiston.
On Thursday, Robinson released a statement saying the district uses outside drivers only when necessary and only after background checks. He said the district prefers using its own drivers but often struggles to find available applicants.
Oxford County Sheriff’s Maj. Dana Thompson said there is an active, ongoing investigation and declined further comment.
An emergency MSAD 72 school board meeting is scheduled for Monday, December 8, at 5 p.m. in the Molly Ockett School gym in Fryeburg. The meeting will open with public discussion then enter to executive session to discuss confidential information under 1 M.R.S.A. 405(6)(F)
