Man found trespassing in Medford school

MEDFORD, Ore. — A man was arrested at a local middle school after a teacher arrived at work in the early morning hours to find him sitting at a desk.

It happened last week at Medford’s McLoughlin Middle School. Medford police said 22-year-old Ira Ponder was discovered by the teacher around 7 a.m. on November 6.

Police said a teacher escorted him out after he said he was there to enroll his child in the school. However, police said that’s not true, as he does not have a child.

Video surveillance showed Ponder following a student into the school, according to MPD.

Ponder was charged with trespassing and a probation violation after running from police.

The school district said all doors to the school are locked during the school day but they’re open in the mornings to let staff and students in. In a statement, the district said McLoughlin has increased personnel at all entrances since the incident occurred.

In a statement, the Medford School district said, “We are always looking for ways to improve our security and this incident has prompted us to better scrutinize our procedures for door security as well as to implement training for students and adults for increased awareness of adult strangers in the area.”

Parents of students were not notified about the incident. The school district said that’s because there was no threat to students.

Ponder pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 30 days at the Talent Work Center.

He was arrested again this week and charged with supplying contraband, identity theft and fraudulent use of a credit card. The latest charges are unrelated to the school incident.

Late Friday afternoon, after this story broke online, the school’s principal sent the following email to parents.

Dear McLoughlin Families,

I want to make you aware of an incident that occurred last week, prior to school starting and most kids arriving for the day.

On November 6th, a person unknown to McLoughlin Middle School entered the building an hour and a half before school started by following a student into the building. Within minutes, a staff member noticed the man, contacted the police, and the man was safely escorted off campus.

Since this incident occurred, we have increased the number of adults in common areas around McLoughlin’s campus. All campus doors are locked during school hours, and front entrances are equipped with buzzers for screening visitors. We are always looking for ways to improve our security and this incident has prompted us to better scrutinize our procedures for door security as well as to implement training for students and adults for increased awareness of adult strangers in the area.

All of our procedures are created with a focus on student and staff safety and we are grateful to our McLoughlin staff and our School Resource Officers for taking swift action in this situation.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any concerns at (541) 842-3720.

Sincerely,

Kelly Soter
Principal
McLoughlin Middle School

 

*A previous version of this article included a statement from an MSD spokesperson claiming the suspect followed a staff member into the building. An official press release sent to KOBI-TV NBC5 after the article was published agreed with the assessment from Medford police that the suspect followed a student inside. In addition, Ponder was charged in 2017 for possession of heroin, a felony. Court records show he failed to appear for numerous court dates to face the felony charge. By the time he appeared in court in 2019, the State of Oregon had changed “user-amount” drug offenses from felonies to misdemeanors. He was convicted for misdemeanor possession of heroin on 10/04/19.

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