UGA instructor flees country after viral video exposes alleged messages with minor

Written by: KC Harrington

Published March 3, 2026 @ 9:41 PM ET

CLARKE COUNTY, Ga. — A University of Georgia instructor has been terminated after a video circulated on social media showing him being confronted over alleged inappropriate messages with someone he believed to be a minor.

University officials confirmed the instructor was fired and barred from campus. During the university’s internal review, officials learned he left the country late Tuesday.

Despite his departure, the University of Georgia Police Department is continuing its investigation and moving forward with a criminal investigation. On Wednesday, campus police executed a search warrant at the instructor’s residence in Athens and recovered additional evidence, according to university officials.

The confrontation was conducted by Street Sweeperz, an Athens-based group that says it works to expose individuals it believes are attempting to prey on children. Videos posted online show members of the group approaching the instructor on UGA’s campus while holding printed screenshots of what they allege were conversations between the instructor and someone he believed to be a 14-year-old boy.

The group alleges the instructor sent explicit messages and videos during the exchanges. In the footage, the instructor appears to acknowledge wrongdoing. The group later announced the allegations in front of what appeared to be one of the instructor’s classes.

University officials are asking anyone with information related to the allegations to contact the UGA Police Department at 706-542-2200. Information may also be submitted to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s CyberTipline at 1-800-843-5678 or through its online reporting system.

The investigation remains ongoing.