An Indiana school employee wept during a recorded police interview as she acknowledged a sexual relationship with a teenage student, according to newly released footage.
According to the New York Post, the video shows Alicia Hughes, 31, describing her involvement with an 18-year-old boy after she was discovered with him in bed on Valentine’s Day.
The recording surfaced days after her husband sought a divorce and emergency custody of their three children.
During questioning, Hughes said the relationship had turned physical weeks earlier.
“The physical thing … has been going on since the end of January,” she told investigators.
“This is the third time that I’ve been with him,” she added, noting it was “not before he was 18.”
Authorities had already received a separate allegation from a 17-year-old student who claimed he also had sexual encounters with Hughes. Confronted with that accusation, she initially denied any additional relationships.
“Are you sure about that?” an officer asked.
Hughes later acknowledged meeting the younger teen at a Dollar General and sending photos, but rejected the claim that they had sex.
“I never slept with him,” she said, before requesting an attorney.
The footage ends with Hughes being handcuffed on five counts of child seduction. Each charge carries a potential penalty of up to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The case began when Hughes contacted police herself, alleging her husband assaulted her after finding her with the 18-year-old student. It is unclear whether any charges were filed against him.
In the interrogation, Hughes said her actions were not “justified” and alleged she had been “physically and mentally” abused by her spouse.
“And that’s where I’m at. And now I’m here,” she said.
Hughes was booked into the Randolph County Jail on a $25,000 bond and suspended from her position with the Randolph Eastern School Corporation.
District officials said she “has been removed from all duties with students pending the outcome of the legal process,” according to Superintendent Neal Adams.
Although an initial hearing set for Feb. 20 was canceled, a judge found probable cause for the charges.
A pretrial motions hearing is scheduled for April 16, followed by a pretrial conference on May 7. A jury trial date has been set for June 15.
