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Surprise math teacher beaten by teens amid allegations

Posted at 8:48 PM, May 17, 2018
and last updated 2018-05-17 23:48:09-04

Teenagers involved in a street brawl with a teacher from the Dysart Unified School District claim he was making sexual advances on a former student.

A video, circulated on Snapchat in February, had the youths talking about a pedophile, and it showed shadowed shots of a physical fight.
  
The next day, Shadow Ridge math teacher Jason Graczyk, was a no-show at the Surprise school.  

The district started an internal investigation and contacted police.  

Graczyk officially resigned about three weeks later. The district also filed a report with the State Board of Education on the pedophile allegation. The Board can determine whether to reprimand teachers or revoke their certification, and a spokesman said he was unable to comment about the status of the complaint.

Surprise Police Sgt. Tim Klarkowski said investigators have "taken the steps to preserve the and collect digital evidence to try to track down the people involved in the posting and creation of the video in this incident."  

Sgt. Klarkowski said the investigation remains open and no arrests have been made. He encourages more people with information about the fight and the sexual allegations against the teacher to come forward.

ABC15 tried to reach Graczyk, but he no longer lives at his Valley home. He also did not respond to requests for comment through social media or relatives.