HollyMatkinGoodyear, AZ – A sixth-grade schoolteacher was arrested at her home early Thursday morning, after she was accused of sexually molesting a 13-year-old male student.
Parents said they knew Brittany Zamora, 27, as a wife and trusted “teacher of the year,” who was one of the most requested teachers at Las Brisas Academy, KSAZ reported.
The victim’s parents became aware of the relationship after a cellphone monitoring application they had installed on his phone alerted them to the presence of sexually suggestive conversations.
“As a result of the app, which alerted the parents to some key words, they then checked the cellphone and discovered these text messages,” Goodyear Police Department spokesperson Lisa Kutis said, according to the New York Post.
The messages indicated that “sexual activity” between the teacher and her student had occurred “both on and off campus,” Kutis told KSAZ.
The boy’s parents contacted the school’s principal, and screenshots of the text messages were forwarded to police, Liberty School District interim Superintendent Dr. Richard Rundhaug said.
“We all had suspicions, because they were really close,” one female student told KSAZ. “I hoped it was just rumors going around school.”
Kutis said that investigators were working to ascertain whether or not Zamora had been communicating with any other students, and noted that additional interviews were being conducted, according to the New York Post.
“That’s part of our overall investigation,” she said. “We’re not ruling that out.”
The Liberty School District issued a statement regarding the allegations on Thursday, and said they would continue to work with police.
“The safety of our students is our # 1 priority,” Rundhaug wrote in the statement. “Transparency is equally important.”
Zamora has worked at Las Brisas Academy for one year, according to KSAZ.
She married her “childhood sweetheart,” Daniel, three years ago, the Daily Star reported.
Zamora faced charges of molestation of a child, sexual conduct with a minor, and furnishing harmful material, according to KSAZ.