Mulberry, Fla. – A Tampa Bay area high school teacher is charged with four counts of showing obscene materials to minors after students caught him looking at gay porn on his cellphone.
Vadi Velez-Gonzalez, a ninth grade reading teacher at Mulberry High School, is accused of having the pornographic images pulled up on his phone during class. Four different students saw adult male pornography on the 47-year-old teacher’s iPhone Oct. 28 which he had on his desk in plain view, according to a police report.
The first student approached Gonzalez’s desk to ask a question about an assignment and observed websites depicting adult male pornography, including a slide show with images of two adults engaged in intercourse and a full body shot of a naked adult male, according to the report.
The student returned to her desk, then went back to Gonzalez’s desk because “she could not believe what she saw.” When she returned to his desk, she used her own phone to record a video of what was being shown on Gonzalez’s phone, the report stated.
The student posted the evidence on the social app Snapchat; from there it was shared throughout the school.
Three other students saw his phone on his desk and saw the same type of images and videos, according to the report.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office obtained a search warrant for Gonzalez’s phone and found he had visited the website adam4adam.com a total of 382 times within the two weeks prior to the incident. Several of those occasions were during school hours.
“The last place he needs to be is a school for our children,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd told WFTS-TV.
Gonzalez was placed on administrative leave Oct. 30pending the outcome of the investigation.
Jason Geary, Polk County Public Schools Media Relations acting senior coordinator said the Polk County School Board could not answer any direct questions about the incident since it is an ongoing investigation but did email a statement to Watermark.
“Superintendent of Schools Kathryn M. LeRoy has suspended Vadi Velez Gonzalez with pay and will recommend his termination to the Polk County School Board at their regular session Dec. 8,” Geary said in the email. “He has the right to request a hearing before final action is taken by the Polk County School Board, and such a request is due by Nov. 19.”
Gonzalez was hired August 11, 2014 and does not have any past disciplinary action in his personnel file, according to the statement.
Geary also added that Polk County Public Schools is cooperating with law enforcement in their criminal investigation.
Gonzalez was arrested Nov. 2 and his bond is set at $8,000.
