Charles martial arts instructor charged with sexual abuse of minors

Charles County Sheriff’s detectives last week arrested Steven James Hardeman, 37, of Newburg in connection with two alleged cases of sexual abuse of minors.

The Feb. 29 arrest occurred after two individuals reported that they were allegedly sexually harassed by Hardeman, who was a martial arts instructor at the American Martial Arts Gym in Waldorf, according to a sheriff’s office press release.

The press release says the alleged assaults occurred back as far as 2013.

A Charles County Grand Jury returned an indictment charging Hardeman with two counts of sex abuse of a minor, two counts of second-degree rape and several other related offenses.

Hardeman taught martial arts at other American Martial Arts gyms with locations in St. Mary’s County and Caroline County, Va., the press release says.

On March 1, a judge said Hardeman could be released from the Charles County Detention Center on personal recognizance as long as he enrolls in home detention with electronic monitoring.

It is not clear if there are other potential victims and anyone with additional information about Hardeman should contact Detective Singh at 301-609-6471.