Palo Alto Child Molestation Suspect Arrested

PALO ALTO, CA — A Palo Alto math tutor was arrested earlier this week on suspicion of sexually molesting seven female students, the Palo Alto Police Department said Thursday in a news release.

Mark Allan Hodes, 74 of Palo Alto, is accused of sexually molesting students during private lessons at his home in separate alleged incidents that occurred several years ago, police said.

Hodes was arrested Tuesday at his home in the 4100 block of Manuela Avenue on a warrant for nine felony counts of lewd acts with a minor aged 14 or 15, police said.

The alleged victims reported the suspect had touched them inappropriately while they were receiving tutoring lessons at his Palo Alto home.

A judge issued the arrest warrant after police detectives presented evidence to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.

The arrest culminated an investigation that police said began June 9, when two women in their 20s reported to police having been sexually molested by a private math tutor several years earlier when they teenagers.

An ensuing investigation led to the identification of seven separate alleged victims, all girls between the ages of 14 and 17, police said.

All of the alleged incidents occurred between 2002 and 2016, police said.

Detectives believe it is possible the suspect victimized additional students of similar age due to the similarity of the allegations and the regular private access that the suspect had to students in his home, police said.

The suspect is known to have tutored students attending attended Castilleja School, Palo Alto High School, Gunn High School, and Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School police said.

The suspect was never employed by any of these schools.

Anyone with information about these cases is asked to call the Palo Alto Police Department’s 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413.

Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to paloalto@tipnow.org or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984.

Tips can also be submitted anonymously through the department’s free mobile app, downloadable at www.bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or www.bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.