ZHENGZHOU - A primary school teacher in Central China's Henan province has been arrested for allegedly molesting multiple female students, local authorities said Wednesday.

Yang Shifu, a 55-year-old teacher from Tongbo county, has been accused of molesting several of his students since last spring, according to a statement from the county government's press office.

Yang was detained on May 23 after police received tips and conducted inquiries among the victims and their family members.

The students also received medical checks, but the statement did not clarify the results.

Internet reports had previously claimed that the parents had collectively taken their children to a local hospital for medical checks, which revealed that the hymens of nine girls had been broken.

The headmaster of the school has been suspended.

The case was the latest in a series of sexual assaults reported in primary schools across the country in May, prompting public anger over the teachers' misconduct and concerns for the safety of students.

On Monday, police in the southern city of Shenzhen detained a primary school teacher on molestation charges.

The 42-year-old suspect, surnamed Wu, was a second-grade teacher at the Hongji Primary School. Wu pleaded guilty to molesting female pupils since last August.

Government officials in Jiahe county, Central China's Hunan province, told Xinhua on Tuesday that police have detained a primary school teacher for allegedly molesting 12 female students.

The girls, all second graders at the Puman Central Primary School, have told police that their math teacher, Zeng Xingming, sexually assaulted them.

A publicity official, surnamed Yin, said Zeng had confessed to molesting five girls, and the investigation would continue.

On May 14, a primary school headmaster and a government employee in Wanning city, Hainan province, were detained by police for allegedly sexually assaulting six female students.

Sources with the Supreme People's Court said Wednesday that courts across the country would strengthen the crackdown on crimes against juveniles, show minimal tolerance toward such offenders and offer the greatest level of protection to the children.