Middle-aged man suspected of molesting teen neighbor in capital

The suspect worked as a school bus driver and is suspected of luring the girl, from age 15, into his house with cash and gifts Jerusalem police spokesman said.

By ETGAR LEFKOVITS
A 49-year-old Jerusalem resident was under arrest Thursday for allegedly repeatedly sexually assaulting a teenage neighbor over the past few years, police said. The suspect, Shimon Barda, worked as a school bus driver. He is suspected of luring the girl, from the time she was 15, into his house with cash and gifts and then sexually molesting her, Jerusalem police spokesman Shmuel Ben-Ruby said. The suspect asserted that the relations between him and the teen were not coerced, and that he did not know how young she was, his lawyer said at a remand hearing. He was remanded in custody by a Jerusalem court on Thursday for five days. The court rejected a request by the defendant's lawyer to bar the publication of the suspect's name, citing public interest and the fact that police suspect that the alleged abuser may have molested other teens as well.