from www.shewired.com – A female music teacher at a prestigious girls’ school in London faces up to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to having an affair with a 15-year-old female student, according to the BBC.
Nicknamed the “jazz lady” by her students, Helen Goddard, 26, admitted Tuesday to a string of sex charges after having an illicit five-month affair with the teen.
Goddard, a trumpet player and former teenage prodigy who played at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics, struck up a friendship with the female victim over several cups of coffee before seducing her.
An anonymous tip later reached another teacher, who texted the girl’s parents to warn them of the scandal. Police and social services were alerted and the pair were found together during a raid in July. The day after the Goddard’s arrest, the teen confessed the liaison to her mother.
Goddard pleaded guilty to six counts of sexual activity with a child between February 15, 2009 and July 11, 2009.
The teenage girl, who has not been named, says she is still in love with her teacher and reportedly wants to continue the relationship.
London’s Daily Mail Wednesday quoted a source close to the case as saying, “The girl says she is in love with Miss Goddard…it has been made clear that once the girl turns 16, the relationship will continue, but they are obviously not together at the moment.”
Goddard was bailed out following the hearing at Southwark Crown Court and will be sentenced on September 21. She no longer works in the school and was ordered to sign the sex offender’s registry.