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Former Montgomery County Math Teacher Pleads Guilty to Sex With Student

A Philadelphia woman and former Montgomery County math teacher admitted Tuesday that she had sex with an underage student and sent sexually-explicit photos and videos to the boy.

Former Lower Moreland High School teacher Erica Ann Ginnetti, 34, pleaded guilty to institutional sexual assault and disseminating obscene and other sexual materials to a minor.

Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said the relationship between Ginnetti and the student began in May 2013 when Ginnetti approached the boy at prom and asked him if he would like to work out at her gym. A few days later the boy allegedly emailed Ginnetti and she replied with her cellphone number.

Ferman said that after that the two communicated on a regular basis over several months. During that time, investigators said that Ginnetti sent a series of sexually-charged messages, including videos of herself undressing and performing sex acts on herself as well as “sexually-suggestive” photos of Ginnetti in her underwear and a bikini.

Investigators said the two met up at a coffee shop in July 2013 in Northeast Philadelphia. From there they went to a nearby industrial park on the border with Lower Moreland Township and had sex in Ginnetti's car, according to the police report. Ginnetti then drove the teen back to the coffee shop, investigators said, and asked him not to tell anyone about the incident.

According to investigators, Ginnetti admitted to having sex with the teenage boy after officials became aware of the relationship.

Lower Moreland police said they were tipped off via a phone line used for reporting possible abuses against children. The caller left a message saying they'd overhead students at the school talking about "inappropriate pictures of the minor and the teacher doing 'sexual things.'" Investigators then approached the 17-year-old who gave them a detailed account of how the relationship began and then evolved, police said.

According to her teaching page, Ginnetti taught AP Calculus, AP Statistics, Calculus and Honor Algebra at Lower Moreland.

Following Ginnetti's January 2014 arrest, the Lower Moreland Township School District suspended then fired the teacher.

Ginnetti pleaded guilty to only two of the 13 counts she originally faced, according to court records. She remains out of jail on bail awaiting sentencing. She faces up to seven years behind bars when she is sentenced, according to prosecutors.

As part of her bail conditions, Ginnetti was not permitted to have contact with any children except for her own kids — the eldest of which is a teenager.

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