A teacher who groomed a vulnerable 14-year-old pupil before falsely claiming he raped her has been jailed for two years. Judith Evans, 33, from Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim, was sentenced at Belfast Crown Court after admitting eight charges including sexual communication with a child and sexual activity with a child involving penetration.
The offences occurred between March and May 2024, during which Evans exchanged 9,528 text messages with the teenager, many sexually explicit, and sent him videos of her naked in the bath. She also drove him to Black Mountain where unprotected sexual intercourse took place in her car on April 26.
Judge Patricia Smyth condemned Evans' conduct, stating she 'groomed this child, who was vulnerable by reason of age and personal circumstances, basking in his adolescent attraction towards her'. Evans initially denied the allegations and accused the boy of raping her, but later pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice for making the false claim.
The court heard Evans began targeting the boy after noticing he was going through a hard time, keeping him behind after class and offering support before giving him her personal contact details. The relationship escalated over the Easter holidays, with Evans sending sexualised images and expressing her desire to have sex with him.
Evans was also banned from teaching and made subject to a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order. The teenager and his mother are receiving support, and victim impact statements were read in court.
