BATON ROUGE - A city-parish employee working at BREC's equestrian facility was fired this week after he allegedly sent inappropriate messages to teenager who was taking horse-riding lessons there. 

BREC was first notified of the allegations Jan. 31 and ultimately removed the worker from his position at the Farr Park Equestrian Center, the department said in a statement Friday. 

The employee was not immediately identified.

BREC Superintendent Corey K. Wilson released the following statement in response to the situation. 

“We take seriously the responsibility of ensuring that anyone who visits a BREC park, especially a child, is in a safe environment. Before anyone is hired at the agency or is allowed to become a volunteer, they must undergo a comprehensive multi-layered process which includes a background check and drug screen. If they fail either one, no offer of employment is made. 

Once an employee is hired, they go through an orientation process which includes strict protocols about the supervision of children and those trainings are repeated throughout their tenure at BREC. These actions are reprehensible and will not be tolerated at any BREC location."