Enlarge the image


A female elementary school teacher in her 30s who won the "Teacher of the Year" award in San Diego County has been accused of sexually exploiting the students she teaches.

According to local media such as the Los Angeles Times on the 10th, Jacqueline Ma (34), a teacher at Lincoln Acres Elementary School in National City, southern San Diego County, California, was arrested by police on the 7th.

He taught grades 5 and 6 at the school and was charged with four counts of sexual exploitation of a child, seven counts of possession of child pornography and two counts of committing obscene acts with a child.

Police launched an investigation on Jan. 4, the day before his arrest, after receiving a report from a parent that "a 7-year-old child was being inappropriately subjected by a teacher."

He was arrested and detained and released on bail, but was remanded to the Las Colinas Women's Detention Center in California after police quickly investigated and charged him with a felony.

Police did not provide details of the allegations because the students were minors, but NBC2 reported that there was inappropriate physical contact and sexual activity between the teacher and the student.

The teacher even shocked parents even more when she was named one of five "Teacher of the Year" by the San Diego County Department of Education last August.

According to a profile released at the time of the award, he majored in biology and education at UC San Diego and has been teaching in the National City School District since 6.

He was praised for his enthusiasm for online classes during the coronavirus crisis last year, but some parents questioned him for contacting students too often and showing too much intimacy.