Before his arrest, the former Baker County High School teacher accused of having sex with a 16-year-old student was warned by his co-workers to “Leave [it] alone,” investigators say.
But during the Georgia Florida Football Classic, the teen was spotted by witnesses sitting on his lap, according to a Baker County Sheriff’s arrest report.
Adam Brunner, 29, was arrested Friday on charges of having sex with a minor. He resigned from Baker County High a few days earlier.
According to investigators, Brunner’s relationship with the student--who is now 17--began through a social media app known as Snapchat. The application deletes pictures and messages a short time after they are sent.
Brunner’s roommates and fellow coaches Zachary McGee and Tyler Thomas told investigators Brunner began a “Snapchat relationship” with the student in May, according to the report.
McGhee and Thomas said Brunner dismissed their advice to stop communicating with the teen on social media and told them that “nothing graphic” was being sent.
Investigators said Brunner was later questioned by another district employee who had seen him with the student at the Georgia Florida game. He admitted to her that the student had stayed overnight on a recent weekend and submitted a written statement that the two had “engaged in a physical relationship.”
He later told Sheriff’s Office investigators that the two had had sex multiple times, including the weekend of the Georgia Florida game.
Brunner faces three charges of “unlawful sexual activity with certain minors” and one charge of sexual performance by a child.
He is currently being held on an $80,000 bond.
School officials said that they have referred the case to the Florida Department of Education and the Department of Children and Families for review.
You can follow Rhema Thompson on Twitter @RhemaThompson.
