A substitute teacher in Ohio has been arrested for allegedly handing a high school student $2,000 to kill her estranged husband in a plot that was thwarted by the mother of the teenager.
On Wednesday, 44-year-old Stephanie Demetrius was arrested on first-degree conspiracy after the mother of the teenage student saw the texts between her son and the Ohio teacher at Academy for Urban Scholars High School.
The boy’s mom then contacted police, as per court documents obtained by WSYX, and that led to Demetrius’ arrest.
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“This particular teacher was attempting to groom this young person into committing murder,” Sgt. James Fuqua, of the Columbus Division of Police, told WSYX.
“Without their help, some of this might not have come to light. This was a situation where a parent was able to capture things inside this young person’s phone and contact authorities.”
Police revealed that on March 26, the substitute teacher approached the student at the Columbus school and offered him the cash bounty to kill her soon-to-be ex-husband, handing out $250 as a down payment.
A recorded phone call between Demetrius and the teenager indicated the Ohio teacher confirming the remainder of the payment, stating she owed an additional “15,” the outlet reported.
Demetrius, who was in the process of divorcing her husband she married in 2004 also told the student her estranged spouse worked from home and gave details about when her kids wouldn’t be home.
“When asked if the neighbors would hear the gunfire, she advised that they don’t care about the neighbors,” court documents obtained by The Columbus Dispatch stated.
On Thursday, the mother of four appeared in Franklin County Municipal Court where her public defender denied the allegations and deemed the claims a ‘fabrication’, the outlet reported.
Prosecutor Parker Schwartz stated that Demetrius showed “possessive and controlling behavior,” citing previous homicidal threats levied against her husband that had him obtain a protection order.
Now, Demetrius is being held on a $150,000 bond and has been prohibited from having any contact with her husband and the minor involved in the case, as per reports.
The arrested Ohio teacher is expected to be back in court for a preliminary hearing on April 11, and the Academy for Urban Scholars High School as of Thursday was yet to issue a statement on the matter.
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