A teacher from a prestigious private Island boarding school is facing six charges relating to sexual offences against a minor.

Andrew (Andy) Michael Olson, who taught at Shawnigan Lake School, is charged with four counts of sexual exploitation, a charge applied to a person in a position of trust or authority accused of sexually touching a minor.

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Olson, who is in his mid-30s, is also charged with child-luring and assault causing bodily harm. Charges were sworn on Monday.

The offences are alleged to have occurred between Dec. 1, 2014, and March 6 of this year, against one victim identified in the charges only by initials, at or near Shawnigan Lake.

Shawnigan Lake RCMP started an investigation in late March “once we became aware of allegations against Mr. Andrew Olson,” said Island district RCMP spokesman Cpl. Darren Lagan.

“Given the nature of the allegations, and the fact he is currently before the courts facing multiple criminal charges, we will not provide any further details of our investigation,” Lagan said.

Staff at Shawnigan Lake School did not answer questions posed by the Times Colonist but provided a statement.

“We take our duty of care and responsibilities for young people very seriously at our school. Our priority is their welfare and well-being. We became aware of a situation which required one of our faculty members to be placed on leave. That individual is now no longer employed by the school,” the statement said.

“This is obviously an upsetting situation for our school community. In the interest of the privacy of all concerned, we will not be making any further comment at this time.”

The school would not say when Olson started working there or whether he resigned or was fired.

According to a biography on the Independent Schools Association of B.C.’s website, Olson was senior history teacher at Shawnigan Lake School and the chairman of the technology committee.

He completed his bachelor of arts at the University of Victoria and master’s of educational technology from the University of British Columbia.

“He believes strongly in the use of technology in the classroom, but feels that it should supplement strong pedagogy, not replace it,” the bio says.

He and his wife lived on campus, as Olson was a house director, meaning he was responsible for looking after 57 teenage boys in the residence.

“Outside of education, Andy’s passions are for hanging out with his wife and dog and travel. He has now been to 42 countries,” the bio says.

Olson is set to appear in Duncan provincial court on June 23.

kderosa@timescolonist.com