South County Piano Teacher Pleads Not Guilty to Molestation

UPDATED at at 3:49 p.m. with new details: A Lake Forest piano instructor accused of molesting or taking obscene photographs of four girls pleaded not guilty today to more than a dozen felony charges.

Bail for John Mordecai Scott, 58, remains set at $500,000. He will return to court Aug. 22 for a pretrial hearing.

Scott was arrested Friday on suspicion of showing and taking lewd photos of an underage female student at his home at 20702 El Toro Road, where he works as a piano instructor, according to Orange County sheriff’s Lt. Jeff Hallock.

The girl confided in a sibling, who in turn told their parents, triggering an investigation, Hallock said. Additional alleged victims were subsequently identified.

In addition to giving lessons in his home, Scott taught at Coast Band Music on Via Fabricante in Mission Viejo and OC Music on Aventura in Rancho Santa Margarita, Hallock said.

He was charged today with four counts each of committing a lewd act on a child younger than 14 and lewd acts on a child, two counts of distributing pornography to a minor, and one count each of continuous sexual abuse, using a minor for sex acts and possession and control of child pornography, all felonies.

He also faces a misdemeanor count of child annoyance and a sentence- enhancing allegation of obscene matter used during a sex offense.

One of the alleged victims is between 14 to 15 years old and the rest are younger than 14, according to Deputy District Attorney Vanessa Woods, who said Scott could face up to 30 years and four months in prison if convicted as charged.

Scott’s attorney, Paul Takakjian, could not be reached for comment.

--City News Service

PHOTO John Scott. Photo courtesy the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.