Former Concord teacher Howie Leung has told a Massachusetts court he wants to change his not-guilty plea, on charges he sexually assaulted a Concord middle school student in Newton, signaling a possible deal with prosecutors.

Leung, through his attorney, filed in Middlesex Superior Court for a hearing to change his plea, which is scheduled for July 19. His trial on charges of aggravated rape of a child is still scheduled for Sept. 6.

The criminal trial has been postponed six times since Leung’s arrest more than four years ago in April 2019 due to changes among prosecutors, the pandemic and new evidence.

Leung is accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting a former Concord student during the summers of 2015 and 2016 at the Fessenden Summer ELL Program in Newton, Massachusetts when she was 13 and 14 years old. He is being tried in Massachusetts because that is where some of the most serious crimes allegedly occurred. While the trial has faced years-long delays, Leung remains free on bail, under conditions that require him to stay out of New Hampshire, except for medical appointments with 24-hours notice.

In addition to the two charges of aggravated rape of a child with a 10-year age difference, Leung faces two charges of aggravated indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and two counts of aggravated indecent assault and battery on a person age 14 or older. He has plead not guilty to all charges.

Leung is accused of sexually assaulting his former student in and around Concord, as outlined in initial court documents filed in the city and a report from an independent investigation of the Concord School District. However, state and county prosecutors have not brought any sexual assault charges against Leung in New Hampshire, despite reports that abuses happened in the Granite State.

A Concord Police affidavit filed the day of Leung’s arrest says their investigation yielded reports of abuse in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The 2019 report drafted by independent investigator Djuna Perkins says Leung’s emails suggest the sexual assaults began in February 2015, two months before the Concord student crossed state lines to work at the Fessenden School.

Defense attorney Ghazi al-Marayati, prosecutor Allison Brown and the victim’s lawyer Mark Rufo did not respond to calls made by the Monitor.

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