Faith Academy addresses teacher arrested for allegedly having sex with student

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - The Faith Academy teacher accused of having sex with a 16-year-old student is out of a job.

Jonathan Sauers still sat in Metro Jail Wednesday night. Sauers was a science teacher, Bible teacher and soccer coach.

The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office said the 44-year-old was taken into custody on Faith Academy’s campus Tuesday.

More than 24 hours later, Faith Academy Headmaster Tim Skelton released a statement to parents.

It reads:

This investigation started Monday night when deputies said the 16-year-old alleged victim told her parents she was headed to the Semmes Walmart to buy school supplies.

“She hadn’t returned in an hour and a half, so they went out, found her car, but did not find her daughter in the car,” said Lt. Mark Bailey with the MCSO. “They went inside the Walmart and could not locate their daughter, so they became very concerned.”

Investigators said Sauers met the student at the Walmart, picked her up, drove to a different parking lot and had sex in the car. Soon after, a Semmes police officer found her walking near Moffett Road back to her car.

That’s when investigators said she told them she had been having a sexual relationship with Sauers for months. They said she told them most of the encounters happened in his car, but they believed it also happened at least once at Sauer’s home.

Now authorities want to know if there could be more alleged victims.

“In my 24 years in law enforcement, rarely do we find an offender, whether it be a burglary suspect, a sexual offender, (that) when you catch them in the act, it is very rarely their first offense,” said Bailey.

Sauers is facing two felony charges: one count of a school employee sex act and one count of a school employee sexual contact with a student under 19. If he’s convicted, he could face 10-20 years behind bars for each charge.

The sheriff’s office urged anyone with information to come forward.

“You can remain anonymous,” said Bailey. “We don’t judge. The sheriff’s office and law enforcement do not judge. We gather the facts and evidence, and we apply the law to those facts and evidence. We are not the judge; we are not the jury.”

Investigators said they do have surveillance video of the teen getting into Sauer’s car before leaving the Walmart.

Sauers has a bond hearing Thursday morning.

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