A 30-year-old janitor at a public school in San Pedro Montes de Oca is alleged to have had sex with a 12-year-old student. The complaint against the woman, surnamed Salazar Soto, was filed in August.
According to the former principal, who filed the complaint and notified the Ministry of Education (MEP), she discovered the situation from information from a mother at the school.
The woman told the principal that she has seen the janitor in an “improper situation” with astudent, specifically, giving him a kiss on school grounds.
The principal said the janitor denied the allegation when confronted.
“As an initial measure, what I did was to forbid her contact with students; that she did not clean the boys’ bathroom and that she was not to be in contact with the students. In addition, we created a network for the school’s staff to monitor the students.”
“It did not stop being a gossip, it could not be taken for a fact, but neither as a principal could I stay with my arms crossed,” the former principal said.
Later, the boy confessed everything, he said that the woman (janirot) paid his Uber (transportation) to go to her, the principal learned after speaking to the boy, this after an aunt of the boy had told her that the boy had told a relative of his sexual relations with the janitor.
Including, the boy had some messages and photos with sexual content on his Whatsapp as evidence of the relationship, said the principal.
With the confession and cellular phone evidence, the former principal filed a complaint with the Fiscalia (Prosecutor’s Office) and the MEP.
The Fiscalia is investigating the case against the woman for having “sexual relations with a minor”.
According to Article 159 of the Codigo Penal (Criminal Code), having sex with a minor between 13 and 15 years of age is punished with two to six years in prison.
However, given the boy was 12 at the time, Article 156 stipulates that having sex – oral, anal or vaginal – with anyone under the age of 13, is rape and punished with imprisonment from 10 to 16 years.
“The case is in the preparatory stage of the investigation, which consists of the collection and analysis of evidence,” said the Press Office of the Prosecutor’s Office.
For its part, the MEP explained that the Disciplinary System Department has an open disciplinary case against the woman, and “as a precautionary measure has relocated her to an administrative office, in order to guarantee the physical integrity of the students, while the investigation is in process and there is a hearing, to be held by the end of November,” explained the MEP press department.
Last year, a 40-year-old teacher married a 15-year-old student. In that case, she was not sanctioned given the marriage has the authorization of the minor’s parents and at the time the current law that punishes improper relations had not come into force. And for that reason, the teacher was able to keep her job, as the Civil Service Court rejected her dismissal .
