According to the National City School District, a celebrated elementary school teacher in San Diego’s South Bay was detained on Tuesday on suspicion of sexually abusing children.
According to San Diego County Sheriff’s Department records, sixth-grade teacher Jacqueline Ma is accused of three counts of lewd and lecherous acts with a child under 14 and three counts of oral copulation with a child under 14.
According to the sheriff’s office, Ma, 34, was arrested at the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility.
Leighangela Brady, the district superintendent, confirmed Ma’s arrest on campus at around 8 a.m., away from students, in a statement she sent to NBC 7 on Tuesday night. According to Brady, the district is only aware of one alleged victim who is no longer a student there.
When the alleged abuse allegedly took place has not been specified by investigators. The investigation was started by the National City Police Department after a parent reported concerns on Monday that her 13-year-old child may have had an improper relationship with a former teacher.
“We know that our entire school community is as stunned as we were by this news. The district will cooperate with law enforcement and cannot comment any further on the pending investigation. We will continue to do everything possible to keep our students’ safety, needs, and education first and foremost,” Brady’s statement read, in part.
Brady wrote in a letter to parents that the district was looking into finding a replacement for Ma and urged anyone with information to call NCPD Sgt. Roberto Gonzalez at 619-336-4457.
Ma was selected as one of five Teachers of the Year for 2022–2023 by Cox in an annual showcase of educators. Ma stated that she “considers the relationships she maintains with her students to be her greatest accomplishments” in a profile about her that was published to announce her award.
Lincoln Acres parents told NBC 7 that although they had always believed Ma had a wonderful rapport with her students, they now believe they might have seen something if they had paid a little more attention.
“She was very down to earth. She kind of seemed like a kid herself,” said Katy Carranza, parent to a 1st-grader at Lincoln Acres.
Aileen Carillo’s younger brother was a former student of Ma’s, and she was a little more skeptical.
“She went over the top. She would go to my brother’s games in Tijuana every weekend. She went to one of his birthday parties, everything,” Carillo said. “Honestly, I used to tell my mom, ‘Why is she always texting my brother?’ And she had contact, too, but the way she was always checking in with my brother, I thought it was nice at first like she really cares, but I’ve had a lot of impactful teachers that didn’t have
to be that close.”
NCPD Lt. Omar Ramirez said the department would not comment on the details of the case because they are actively investigating.
