An Elmhurst assistant principal has been put on administrative leave after a student alleged he was choked by him last week.

According to a Fort Wayne Police report, John L. Hester approached a student at a pep rally during school hours Friday and told him he was going to jail. The report then said the student tried to get around him, but Hester grabbed him by the neck, choking him.

The student said he never did anything to provoke Hester and had not been in trouble in school, according to the report.

Hester, a former South Side football coach, was put on paid administrative leave - per his contract - Friday. Fort Wayne Community Schools spokeswoman Krista Stockman said it was unknown how long he will be away from work.

“We like to wrap these things up as quickly as we can,” she said, adding the district is investigating the matter.

No formal charges have been filed against Hester for this incident.

Hester said Tuesday he could not comment on the matter.

He has been employed with the district since 1983 and has been suspended before.

In 2005, he was put on an unpaid suspension for five days while he was an assistant principal at Wayne High School. According to a letter in his personnel file, he suspended a student and released that same student without contacting the parents. It resulted in the disappearance of the student for four days. After the incident, he was put on a monitored assistance plan for the remainder of the school year.