A Florida teacher has been arrested for allegedly having inappropriate sexual contact with a student who was under the age of 16 — and police say she took the boy’s brother to McDonald’s in an attempt to make him jealous.
Kristen O’Brien, 31, was a teacher at United Brethren in Christ Academy, a small private academy in the Daytona Beach area. The investigation began last September after the boy’s mother confiscated his phone and allegedly discovered inappropriate Instagram messages from O’Brien, police tell the Daytona Beach News Journal.
According to the police report, the boy’s mother set up a meeting with O’Brien in a fast food parking lot, where the teacher allegedly confessed that she had a “crush” on the child. She allegedly confessed to his mother that she and the boy had cuddled under a blanket on his couch, and that the boy touched her sexually.
The report, which was also obtained by WFTV-TV, alleges that the teacher had even tried to “make [the boy] jealous” by tutoring his brother and taking him out to McDonald’s.
According to WFTV, O’Brien had become close with the child’s family, which included regular visits to their home.
During her meeting with the boy’s mother, O’Brien allegedly said that she had given the boy three options: they could stop talking completely, they could pretend she had never told him of her feelings, or they could have sex and not worry about the consequences.
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After the parking lot meeting, the boy’s mother reported the teacher to authorities. O’Brien later quit her job at the school.
O’Brien, who has at least one daughter, was also a licensed foster parent. According to WKMG-TV, the foster children who were in her home have since been removed.
PEOPLE confirms that O’Brien has been charged with lewd and lascivious battery and committing a sexual act on a child older than 12 but younger than 16. She posted $50,000 bail and has been freed from jail.
O’Brien has not yet entered a plea, and court records do not reflect an attorney authorized to speak on her behalf. She did not immediately return PEOPLE’s request for comment.
*story by People