Former Arizona teacher arrested for allegedly abusing teen boy

BUCKEYE, Ariz — A former high school teacher has been arrested in Buckeye for allegedly having an inappropriate relationship with a 15-year-old student.

Alyssa Todd, who was a teacher and athletic coach at Odyssey Institute for Advanced and International Studies High School, was arrested on Wednesday and booked into jail for alleged sex crimes involving a minor. 

Buckeye police said the agency was contacted on March 16 by the husband of the teacher who suspected she was having inappropriate contact with a teenage student. Court records show the husband reported finding handwritten letters from the student hidden in the teacher’s drawer.

Investigators reviewed communications between the teacher and student and concluded that abuse had allegedly occurred on and off campus for at least two months, police said.

During an interview with a forensic interviewer, the teenager claimed the teacher told him she “loved him” and she “would leave her husband” for him. The child further disclosed that the teacher would buy him gifts and pick him up in her car to engage in inappropriate conduct, records show.

Todd, 23, is now facing charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and sexual conduct with a minor. 

“Sexual predators come in all shapes and sizes,” Buckeye Police Public Information Officer Carissa Planalp said. “It is imperative for parents and guardians to know who their kids are communicating with, know who is in their child’s life.”

Odyssey Family of Schools said Todd has been terminated from her position.

Police said this is the third alleged “female sexual predator” with ties to local schools arrested in Buckeye within the last year.

Two of those arrests were teachers at Odyssey Institute for Advanced and International Studies High School.

“Any time you have a series of arrests that seem awfully similar in nature, you tend to think maybe there’s an issue, but on the flip side of that, is that you have individuals who are coming forward with that information. These crimes are not going unreported,” Planalp said.

Todd is being held on a $75,000 bond. She is scheduled to be back in court on Wednesday.

Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated who originally tipped off investigators about the alleged relationship between the student and teacher.

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“The Valley” is what locals call the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is considered the largest metropolitan area in the Southwest. 

The Valley is made up of various major cities other than Phoenix, including:

• Mesa
• Chandler
• Scottsdale
• Tempe
• Glendale
• Surprise
• Peoria
• Gilbert
• El Mirage
• Avondale
• Litchfield Park
• Goodyear
• Buckeye

Whether a city is in the “East Valley” or “West Valley” depends on where it is in relation to Phoenix.

The cities of the Valley have a combined population of 4,845,832 people, according to the 2020 United States Census. This makes it the 11th largest metropolitan area in the country right behind the Boston and Atlanta areas.

How big is Maricopa County?

Maricopa County is the United States’ 4th largest county in terms of population with 4,485,414 people, according to the 2020 Census.

The county contains around 63% of Arizona’s population and is 9,224 square miles. That makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).

One of the largest park systems in the nation is also located in Maricopa County. The county has an estimated 120,000 acres of open space parks that includes hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.

The county’s seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the census-designated 5th most populous city in the United States.

The county was named after the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American Tribe.