Full Notification

Detectives arrested a man on Tuesday for sexually molesting female teenagers at his residence during private math lessons. The abuse happened several years ago, and seven victims have come forward. Police believe it is possible other victims may exist as well. On June 9, 2020, two women in their twenties came to the Palo Alto Police Department to report that they had both been sexually molested by a private math tutor several years earlier when they were teenagers. The ensuing investigation by detectives led to the identification of seven separate total victims, all girls between the ages of 14 and 17 when the crimes occurred between the years of 2002 and 2016. The victims reported the suspect had touched them inappropriately while they were at his house in Palo Alto receiving tutoring. Detectives presented the case to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, and a judge issued an arrest warrant for nine felony counts of lewd acts with a minor aged 14 or 15. On Tuesday, August 25, detectives arrested the suspect, 74-year-old Mark Allan Hodes, without incident at his home in the 4100 block of Manuela Avenue in Palo Alto. This is the same location where the victims said the abuse occurred. Police booked the suspect into the Santa Clara County Main Jail pursuant to the warrant. His booking photograph is attached to this release (note: the booking photo has been removed pursuant to AB994 as of December 2023). Detectives believe it is possible the suspect victimized additional students of similar age. This is based on the similarity of the allegations and the regular private access that the suspect had to students in his home. Detectives are aware that the suspect had provided private tutoring services to students who attended Castilleja School, Palo Alto High School, Gunn High School, and Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School (note: this school serves younger students, grades kindergarten through 8; the youngest victim of which we are currently aware was 14). It is possible he tutored students who attended other schools as well. The suspect was never employed by these schools, only by the parents of the students he tutored. Police encourage anyone who may have been victimized to contact the Palo Alto Police Department. Anyone with information about these cases is asked to call our 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to [email protected] or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through our free mobile app, downloadable at www.bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or www.bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.