A former secretary at a high school in Miami-Dade was arrested after she was accused of inappropriate conduct with a teen student.
Vanessa Vigil, 35, was arrested Wednesday on charges of offenses against a student by an authority figure and five counts of battery, an arrest report said.
Vigil Accused of Making Flirtatious Advances Towards Student, Touched Him Inappropriately
According to the report obtained by NBC Miami, Vigil made unwanted advances toward the 16-year-old while she was working at Miami Killian Senior High School. The teen said he met Vigil in September and for weeks she "had been very flirtatious with him by asking for his telephone number and calling him handsome," the report said.
At one point, the teen said Vigil started touching him and telling him she loved him, the report said. The teen said Vigil inappropriately touch him on five occasions against his will, and after one of the incidents, said he had a panic attack, the report said.
According to the arrest report, on Sept. 21, the victim, who works as a student office aide, dropped his pencil on the floor and bent over to pick it up, at which time Vigil stood behind him and began tapping on his lower back with her nails, according to Local 10 News.
'I Am in Love with You
Police said Vigil told the victim, "I would have bagged you if I was in high school with you." The victim told officers that later in the day Vigil gave him a "dirty pizza slice key chain" that was attached to her house keys and then asked him for his phone number in front of another student.
The other student corroborated the incident to police, authorities said. According to the report, the next day, Vigil caressed the student's face using both her hands when he went to the office to exchange his school laptop, telling him he "your face is smooth."
According to the report, Vigil once again caressed the victim's face later in the day while they were in the assistant principal's office wing and told him, "I am in love with you." The victim told police that he was uncomfortable and didn't know what to say, so he left the room.
According to the report, on that same day, Vigil asked the student to follow her to a storage closet in the main office. As the student walked behind her, Vigil "placed her hands on her buttocks and looked back at him and smiled," the report stated.
The victim said once they were in the room, which he described as small and dark, she placed her hand on his chest and said, "You should get out of here before I do something I'm not supposed to do."
He said she then leaned forward as if to kiss him, so he took a step back. According to the report, as the two were walking, Vigil began to caress the victim's right arm.She later rubbed his hand and once again asked for his phone number, which he declined to give her, authorities said. Police said she then blew a kiss toward the victim as he left the office.
Vigil No Longer Working at School, District Confirmed in Statement
When Vigil was interviewed by investigators, she denied the allegations and said the teen was the one who was flirting with her and called her pretty, the report said. Vigil was arrested and booked into jail. She faces five charges of battery and offenses against a student.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools told Local 10 News that Vigil was no longer working at the school at the time of her arrest. They released the following statement Thursday about the allegations:
Miami-Dade County Public Schools is deeply troubled by the disturbing allegations made against this former employee. M-DCPS cooperated with the authorities during the investigation of this former employee. This type of comportment will not be tolerated as it runs contrary to the professional conduct we expect from all employees.
