John Jefferson
Inset: Laura Caron (Cape May County Correctional Facility). Background: Middle Township Elementary School No. 2 (Middle Township Public Schools).
A New Jersey elementary school teacher is behind bars after she sexually abused one of her former students for four years and gave birth to the boy’s child, according to prosecutors.
Laura Caron, 34, is charged with aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child. If convicted she faces up to 20 years in prison. The Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office alleges the abuse occurred between 2016 and 2020 when the boy would have been between around 11 and 15 years old. Prosecutors say the boy was living with Caron during that time.
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Philadelphia ABC affiliate WPVI obtained an arrest affidavit that said the boy was just 13 years old when he fathered the then-28-year-old Caron’s child in 2019. But the alleged crime went unnoticed until December when the victim’s father reportedly saw a photo of the now 5-year-old child, noticed a family resemblance and posted about it on Facebook.
According to the affidavit, Caron and the victim’s parents became friends when she was the victim’s 5th-grade teacher at Middle Township Elementary School No. 2. The victim and his siblings reportedly began staying with Caron for a couple nights a week and then moved in full time with her from 2016 to 2020, the dates the alleged crimes occurred.
The victim’s sister told cops that her brother began sleeping in the same bed as Caron starting when he was 11. She reportedly said she and her siblings would sleep in a shared room on the second floor of Caron’s home and her brother would be in the now-disgraced teacher’s bed by morning.
Caron also would allegedly go into the bathroom while the boy was taking a shower and lock the door, his sister told cops.
After the father’s revelation on Facebook, the victim, who will turn 20 this year, allegedly admitted to his sister in a text message that he was indeed the father, but asked that she keep it a secret between them. Caron and the victim had been in regular contact up until his father’s social media post, the affidavit reportedly said.
Prosecutors along with the Middle Township Police Department arrested Caron on Wednesday and executed a search warrant at her home. She remains in the Cape May Correctional Center without bond. Her attorney did not immediately return a call for comment.
“Teachers hold a position of great trust, and the allegations in this case represent a deeply troubling breach of that trust,” Jeffrey H. Sutherland said in a statement. “We will work tirelessly to ensure justice is served and to support the victim and their family throughout this process.”
The prosecutor’s office says the school district is cooperating with the investigation. Local CBS affiliate KYW reports that Caron is on paid administrative leave.
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