Shamp Slams Program after Known Child Predator Assaults 10YO

A 25-year-old Level 2 sex offender on lifetime probation is accused of entering Orangewood Elementary School and sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl, triggering sharp criticism from lawmakers who say Arizona’s monitoring systems failed at every level.

According to Phoenix Police and court documents cited in a press release from the Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus, Abel Gblah allegedly followed a student being buzzed into the school on November 21, falsely claimed to be a doctor, and accessed the campus. Investigators say he then led the victim into an empty classroom, where the assault occurred.

Officials say Gblah’s history includes a long list of probation violations and missed intervention opportunities: skipped probation check-ins, unauthorized smartphone use, pornography violations, lying about contact with minors, violating a protection order, leaving the state without permission, being arrested in Miami, missing 22 treatment sessions, being discharged from treatment, receiving a highest-risk assessment, and being released from jail just ten days before the alleged assault.

Despite those repeated red flags, Gblah reportedly continued receiving minimal consequences.

At a press conference, Senator Janae Shamp (R-29) called the situation “a catastrophic system failure.”

“This is such a system failure,” Shamp said. “A dangerous predator with a long list of violations was allowed to roam free because the system refused to take his risk seriously. This tragedy proves more work must be done immediately. I will pursue every legislative solution necessary to fix these failures and ensure no high-risk offender ever slips through the cracks again.”

Shamp noted that she has already passed several child-protection laws in recent sessions — including SB 1232, SB 1236, and SB 1404 — but said the Orangewood case exposed profound structural weaknesses.

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Beth Goulden, Chair of the Arizona Sex Offender Management Board, said the incident demonstrates “the deeply troubling reality of a convicted sex offender repeatedly violating probation and entering a school environment, placing our most vulnerable children at risk.” She called for a return to “rigorous supervision, swift interventions, and proactive protections.”

Victim-rights advocate Kayleigh Kozak said the state is still relying on “a risk assessment tool that hasn’t been updated since 2002,” leaving gaps in how high-risk offenders are evaluated and monitored.

“The holistic failure is unacceptable and completely disturbing,” Kozak said. “These failures allowed a high-risk offender to remain in the community, and our children are paying the price.”

Shamp said she plans to introduce a reform package in the 2026 session to strengthen consequences for repeated violations, increase oversight of probation and treatment providers, require immediate intervention for high-risk assessments, tighten school-notification rules, and close loopholes that allow offenders to avoid accountability.

“Arizona’s children deserve protection — not a system that repeatedly ignores red flags,” Shamp said. “What has been reported shows why this effort is so important.”

Authorities have not yet released updated court filings or custody status beyond the initial allegations.