May 18, 2022- 8:59 a.m.
A Pennsylvania high school choral teacher was arrested after allegedly having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old female student.
Olivia Ortz, 26, a teacher at Wilmington Area High School, has been charged with sexual contact with a school student, unlawful contact with a minor for sexual offenses, and criminal use of a communication facility, as reported by New Castle News.
Ortz’s husband was the first to report the relationship to authorities after finding messages between Ortz and the teenager, police said.
The teenager stayed overnight at Ortz’s home multiple times and communicated through messages on Spotify, police determined. The pair established code words on the music streaming platform to warn each other if “something bad” happened, according to the criminal complaint.
Ortz was suspended and then later resigned from her teaching position on May 9 after the New Wilmington Police Department and the Lawrence County District Attorney’s Office investigated the claims.
Ortz is the second teacher in the school district’s music department to face allegations. Anthony Priano, 37, a former band and music teacher at Wilmington Area High School, was also accused of having inappropriate relationships with female students in June 2020.
The former teacher is being held at the Lawrence County Jail and is expected to appear in court on May 25.
