An elementary school teacher from North Carolina was arrested in Virginia for traveling from her home to Fairfax County to have sex with a 13-year-old former student, police say.
Police in Fairfax County, Virginia, arrested Kathleen Capitano, 24, of Shallotte, North Carolina, and charged her with four felony counts of using communications systems to perpetrate an offense against a child.
The woman was arrested at a hotel in the Washington, D.C., suburb of Herndon, Virginia, where she allegedly told the teen to meet her for a sexual encounter. Police were alerted by the woman’s online activity and had arranged the intervention with the assistance of the victim’s parents.
Capitano was an intern teacher in the Fairfax County Public Schools during the 2014-15 school year when she first met the victim. He was then 12 years old.
Police allege that the woman had a “physical relationship” with the then-12-year-old student when she was with the Fairfax school system. The investigation reportedly also found that the teacher had sent explicit photos of herself to the boy via text and email.
Brunswick County North Carolina Schools reported that the suspect has been placed on paid leave from her job as a math teacher at Shallotte Middle School while the court case plays out. The suspect has only been a teacher in North Carolina for a short time, having been hired in August of 2015.
Capitano is being held without bond, and prosecutors are considering leveling more charges against her. Police are also looking for other victims, as her online activity leads them to believe she may have gotten close to other students.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.
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