Teacher charged with inappropriate relationship with female high school student

Photo / 123rf

A young woman has described through tears how uncomfortable she felt when her teacher allegedly put his finger inside the top of her pants.

The registered teacher appeared before the Teachers Disciplinary Tribunal on Wednesday charged with engaging in serious misconduct, forming an inappropriate relationship with a Year 12 student at the school he taught at in 2019.

The tribunal heard from the young woman how she and the South Auckland teacher, whose name is suppressed, first bonded on school grounds over their mutual love for rock music.

"I remember him coming over to me at interval. I was playing a riff on my guitar," the young woman said.

"He noticed it was a rock song and we soon started chatting about it. I thought he was cool at first.

"All of my peers thought he was cool. He was the type of teacher that would roam the room engaging in chat.

"Everyone else felt like they could talk to him and have a laugh with him and so did I."

She told the tribunal how the teacher-student relationship grew into a friendship.

The teacher allegedly offered her rides home from school events, bought her food and jewellery, shared pizza with her at her home, spent time alone with her, and allegedly physically touched her.

The young woman described the moments leading up to the alleged physical contact, detailing how the pair ate fish and chips under a bridge in the teacher's van.

Choking back tears she explained how she climbed into the back of the van to check out the bed and her teacher followed her and sat beside her.

Teachers Disciplinary Tribunal chairwoman Theo Baker has heard evidence from a young woman that her teacher allegedly inappropriately touched the student in his van. Photo / NZME

"I remember him putting his finger inside my pants by the waistband and saying that my tag was sticking out.

"I felt stiff and paralysed, but I still quickly shut him down."

The woman then described how she smoked a joint before leaving the bridge and continuing to the beach.

"When we got to the beach he asked for a hug. I told him it's more like a huddle. He then rubbed his nose on my neck."

The woman continued on to tell the tribunal how she felt paranoid and asked if they could leave the beach.

But the accused's lawyer, Dzinta King, told the young woman her client denied all allegations of physical contact.

"He's lying," the young woman said. "I think he is embarrassed."

Eventually, the young woman's grandmother grew suspicious and the teenager confided in the older woman.

The hearing will continue tomorrow with the tribunal expected to hear from a number of witnesses throughout Thursday and Friday.