VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The co-owner of a local early childhood education center accused of rape was granted bond during a hearing Friday morning.
Michael Pope, 57, was arrested on Sept. 21. He is the co-owner of The Goddard School of Lynnhaven in Virginia Beach.
In court Friday, it was revealed Pope is charged with rape, object sexual penetration and forcible sodomy in connection with an alleged incident that happened in August of 2024 — charges Pope disputes. Prosecutors claim the victim is an adult relative of Pope's wife.
Prosecutors laid out what they believe happened the night of the alleged incident during Friday's hearing: Pope's wife's relative went to the Pope's home for a pool party. Once other relatives started leaving, the relative stayed in the pool, prosecutors say.
At some point, prosecutors claim, Pope and his wife got intimate in the pool and Pope allegedly asked the relative if she would strip in the pool.
In the early morning hours, prosecutors claim, Pope's wife left the pool to go to bed. The relative then also got out of the pool but scraped her knee doing so. Prosecutors allege Pope helped her get to a bed, took off her swimsuit, and then performed sexual acts on her. The woman stayed on the bed in shock after Pope left the room, prosecutors say.
Prosecutors claim Pope later brought the woman ice and apologized to her.
When police got involved, Pope allegedly gave them a statement saying he had 15 beers that day and claimed the woman tried having sex with him, prosecutors added.
A judge granted Pope a $50,000 bond after the defense argued he's not a flight risk, citing the fact that he turned himself in. The judge also allowed Pope to travel out of state for conferences related to The Goddard School.
However, Goddard Systems, the company that franchises all the Goddard Schools, says Pope will not be allowed on school property. The full statement they shared with News 3 is as follows:
The safety and well-being of the children in every Goddard School is always our top priority. We are aware of a situation involving a co-owner of The Goddard School of Lynnhaven and we take this matter very seriously. We are currently gathering additional information, but importantly, we can confirm that the situation in no way involves children or the school. Given the active legal process, the co-owner will not be on school property.-Goddard Systems, LLC
Pope's next hearing is scheduled for Oct. 6.
The Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office has been appointed as special prosecutor in this case.
