Teacher held for molesting girl students in China

A 55-year-old primary school teacher in central China has been arrested for allegedly molesting a number of female students, officials said Wednesday.

Yang Shifu, a teacher from Tongbo county in Henan province, has allegedly molested a number of his students since last spring, Xinhua cited a county government statement as saying.

He was detained after police received tips and conducted inquiries among the victims and their family members.

The students also received medical checks, but the statement did not reveal the results.

Media reports previously claimed that the parents had collectively taken their children to a hospital for medical checks, which revealed that at least nine girls were sexually abused.

The headmaster of the school has been suspended.

The case was the latest in a series of sexual assaults reported in primary schools across the country.

Earlier this week, police in the southern city of Shenzhen detained a 42-year-old primary school teacher on molestation charges.

Officials in Jiahe county in Hunan province told Xinhua that police detained a primary school teacher for allegedly sexually assaulting 12 female students, all second graders.

On May 14, a primary school headmaster and a government employee in Wanning in Hainan province were detained for allegedly sexually assaulting six female students.