Former Arlington Bus Driver Accused Of Touching 2 Teen Girls

ARLINGTON, MA — A former bus driver for the Arlington Public Schools has been accused of inappropriately touching two teenage girls. Carl Welliver, 63, of Winchester, was arraigned Wednesday on two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person over the age of 14 and two counts of accosting and annoying another person in connection with assaults on two teenage girls.

Welliver worked as a special needs bus driver for the Arlington Public Schools until he was removed in June. Police and school officials say the accusations stem from his job as a driving instructor in Winchester, and they have not received any complaints about Welliver pertaining to Arlington students.

"The allegations stem from an outside job in another community, not related to their employment with the Arlington Public Schools," Police Chief Julie Flaherty and Superintendent Elizabeth Homan said in a joint statement. "The individual in question has been employed as a 7D Student Transport Driver since 2009 and had passed all standard pre-employment screening, including CORI check."

The incidents are believed to have occurred in August and early fall of 2020 while Welliver was a driving instructor at the Middlesex Driving Academy, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said. Welliver's last class at the Academy was in May this year.

Authorities began investigating Welliver June 3. Investigators found that he touched two 16-year-old girls on their upper thighs and engaged in other inappropriate incidents of unwanted touching while they were driving, and while one of the girls was working at the Academy, the DA's office said.

In addition to working as a bus driver in Arlington, Welliver previously owned his own driving school in Stoneham.

He was released on personal recognizance Wednesday and removed from driving students. His driving license has also been suspended.

Welliver will next appear in court Sept. 3.

"The district will review this individual’s employment history, and any employee or family with questions or concerns is asked to contact the superintendent's office at 781-316-3501 or the Arlington Police Department at 781-643-1212," Flaherty and Homan said.