A Massachusetts man who has worked as a school bus driver is accused of raping a child.
Derek Thistle, a 32-year-old Marlborough resident, appeared in Middlesex Superior Court Friday to face a slew of charges.
Thistle was arraigned on charges of forcible rape of a child, aggravated rape of a child, indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and open and gross lewdness, the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office said.
Prosecutors say the charges stem from the sexual assault of a male child Thistle knows.
Authorities said Thistle has has reportedly been working as a school bus driver, but did not say where or when.
Thistle is accused of exposing himself to the victim on FaceTime in July of 2023.
The boy’s aunt was in the home and saw this occur, according to prosecutors. He disclosed after this incident that Thistle had allegedly sexually assaulted him a few months earlier.
Thistle was ordered held on $10,000 bail with conditions that he stay away from and have no contact with the victim or any witnesses. He is forbidden from having unsupervised contact with minors, and he is required to remain in Massachusetts.
He is due back in court May 17. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney who could answer to the charges against him.
