Staff report



THOMASVILLE — Dr. Darryl Dean, superintendent of Pike County Schools, was arrested on Thursday for allegedly having sexual communications on the Internet with a Peachtree City police officer posing as a 15-year-old girl. Bond was set at $25,000 by a Fayette County judge.

Dean, 43, a former head baseball coach and assistant football coach at Central High School in Thomasville, was taken into custody at his office in Zebulon. At his court appearance, he was ordered to have no contact with children under the age of 16 other than his own. He is married and has two daughters, ages 7 and 15.

According to an Atlanta TV station, the arrest resulted from computer communications between Dean and a police officer who convinced Dean she was a girl who was home-schooled. Dean asked the officer to meet him, but he failed to show at the scheduled time, said Peachtree City Police Chief James Murray.

Dean had previously called the officer on his office phone and sent a picture of himself over the Internet, Murray said. The telephone and computer IP address were traced to the Pike County Board of Education Office in Zebulon.

The charges Dean faces could lead to a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $25,000.

In addition to working at Central, Dean previously served as principal at Statesboro High School, Troup County High School and Pike County High School.