A TriMet bus driver was arrested Tuesday on charges he sexually abused a 15-year-old girl he met while driving his No. 32 bus.
Christopher Alden Parker, 53, was arrested at his home in Southeast Portland for sex abuse in the third degree (two counts), online sexual corruption of a child in the first degree and violation of a stalking order (five counts). He appeared in Multnomah County Court on Wednesday.
A release from Portland Police said the abuse began when the girl was 14 and went on for more than a year.
Parker told investigators that he communicated with the girl via text and email, and that he touched and kissed her.
At one point a court order was issued that prohibited his contact with the girl, but this was violated 10 times, according to detectives.
TriMet began an internal investigation on the veteran driver in mid-March due to concerns he was allowing friends and family on the bus as companions, and for driving off route, both of which are policy violations.
In 1981, at the age of 24, Parker was hired as a TriMet bus driver. He was placed on administrative leave during the transportation agency's internal investigation, which eventually became a police matter when criminal wrongdoing was possible.
The online charge is a felony and the sex abuse charges are misdemeanors.
Parker was booked into Multnomah County Jail, where he is on suicide watch.
TriMet bus No. 32 runs from Clackamas County to downtown Portland.
