A teacher at a special education elementary school in Patras is accused of slapping a 9-year-old boy on the autism spectrum during class, prompting a criminal complaint by the child’s parents and an official investigation by authorities.
According to the boy’s mother, the incident happened while the child was in his classroom eating and playing with a doll. She said the child was tapping the doll on his desk, which allegedly annoyed a teacher from a nearby classroom.
“The teacher picked him up, pulled him a bit toward the library area and gave him three hard slaps, one after the other,” the mother told MEGA.
The teacher accused was not the child’s assigned teacher, the mother said.
Witness and Family Reaction
The incident allegedly took place in front of a privately hired support aide, who had been arranged and paid for by the family to provide one-on-one assistance. The aide informed the child’s mother about what happened.
The boy’s grandmother said the child had been doing well but is now in shock. She added that the family has raised the child “with love” and relies on parallel support for his safety and well-being.
Allegations of Previous Incidents
The mother also alleged that this was not the first time the specific teacher had acted aggressively toward her son. She claimed the teacher previously admitted to the support aide that she had isolated the child last year, placed him on a mattress and hit him in an attempt to calm him down.
Those allegations have not been independently verified.
Legal and Administrative Action
The parents have filed a formal complaint, and police have opened a case file. Authorities also included another teacher in the case file because she was reportedly present during the incident and did not prevent it.
The local primary education authority has ordered an administrative investigation into the case.
The inquiries are ongoing.
