OCALA, Fla. (WSVN) — Dontay Akeem Prophet, the 33-year-old principal of Destiny Leadership Academy, is facing charges of aggravated child abuse and false imprisonment of a chld after an incident that was captured by a security camera on May 10.
The bone-chilling surveillance footage revealed a struggle between Prophet and a young child, during which the child attempts to break free. The video lasted 3 minutes and 30 seconds as it showed Prophet pinning the child to the ground between his legs and allegedly putting the child in a chokehold, hitting him with a charging cable and slapping his face.
After discovering the existence of the surveillance video during an interaction with authorities, Prophet appeared unaware that the camera had recorded the entire altercation.
“Yeah, and it caught everything on camera. Everything,” said the arresting officer on bodycam footage as he spoke to Prophet the following day.
Public records show that this is not Prophet’s first felony charge related to misconduct with children. He was previously arrested in May 2019, accused of sexually molesting a child he met while working as a camp counselor in 2017. The charges included lewd lascivious molestation of a child and an attempt to commit interfering with child custody.
While one charge was dropped and adjudication was withheld on the other, Prophet had also violated his probation in June 2023.
The case raised serious questions about how Prophet was able to secure his position at Destiny Leadership Academy. Dr. Elvira Hagins, the school’s executive principal declined to comment on the situation.
A letter from the school’s leader confirmed that Prophet no longer works at the private school, which operates under regulations mandated by the Florida Department of Education.
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