A former school security guard at Seneca Valley School District accused of touching a student inappropriately is charged with aggravated indecent assault.

Jackson Township police said that Matthew A. Cowan, 24, of Brackenridge, was formerly employed by Securitas Security services USA, a private security company that provided security service to the Seneca Valley campus. According to authorities, Cowan has not been employed by the security company since October 2021.

Cowan was charged Thursday with felonies aggravated indecent assault forcible consumption, sexual contact with a student, criminal use of a communication facility and misdemeanor indecent assault forcible consumption.

According to charging documents, an investigation began in October 2021 after a 17-year-old female student reported an alleged assault to police.

The juvenile told police she and Cowan had been in contact via social media sites for eight months prior to the start of the 2021 school year.

Police said on Aug. 26, 2021, the juvenile was communicating with Cowan about finding her last class of the day.

According to the affidavit, Cowan instructed the juvenile to meet behind the high school. Police said Cowan proceeded to touch her inappropriately for about 10 minutes.

An audit log of the key fob system on Seneca Valley’s campus recorded Cowan leaving the middle school at the time the juvenile reported meeting him on the date of the incident and returning 30 minutes later.

According to a statement from Seneca Valley School District, they were made aware of the accusations by a high school student, who has since graduated.

“The security guard was an employee of Securitas, a third-party security service contracted by the School District at that time, and never was an employee of Seneca Valley School District,” the statement said. “As is our procedure, we ask for and receive verification through paperwork that all security guards have the required clearances, including child abuse clearance, at the time of hiring. We confirmed this individual had all clearances at the time he began working for the security company.”

The district terminated it’s contract with Securitas in late 2021 and uses a different security firm. They currently have a full-time Safety and Security Supervisor and employ three uniformed police officers at each of the three seventh through twelfth grade secondary buildings.

The District also maintains service contracts with several local police agencies to provide a visible presence and regular security patrols at the four kindergarten through sixth grade schools, according to the statement.

“We will continue to provide additional assistance to law enforcement as they continue their investigation and maintain our focus on the safety and security of all students, staff and visitors to the School District,” the statement said.

Cowan has not been arrested, and a preliminary hearing has not been scheduled.