A California high school football coach has been arrested after students allegedly discovered his cellphone recording inside a locker room while athletes were changing.
The disturbing incident happened Sept. 10 at Tracy High School in San Joaquin County.
Police said student athletes found a cellphone in the on-campus locker room that was still actively recording.
The students stopped the recording, deleted the video and turned the phone over to a teacher.
School resource officers and detectives then launched an investigation and determined that the cellphone belonged to 48-year-old Jeffrey Pribble, the school’s head football coach and a physical education teacher.
Police said the investigation moved quickly after the parent of one of the students contacted the Tracy Police Department.
Officers responded to the school and arrested Pribble on Sept. 11.
The Tracy Unified School District has since placed him on leave while the investigation continues.
Police Chief Sekou Millington praised the students for coming forward and said protecting children’s safety and privacy remains a top priority.
“Our children deserve to feel safe at school and in every space where they should be able to learn, grow, and simply be kids,” Millington said.
He also thanked the students who reported what they found and the officers and detectives who responded to the case.
Authorities are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact the Tracy Police Department as detectives continue investigating.
Pribble has been placed on leave as the case moves forward.