Editor’s Note: This story contains discussions of child abuse that may be disturbing. Reader discretion is advised. If you suspect a child is being abused, find out how to report it in your state here. To connect with a counselor, you can call the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4253.
() The former suburban Chicago teacher accused of sexually abusing a student faces an additional 52 charges in the case, prosecutors revealed this week.
Christina Formella, 30, faced three charges two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and one count of criminal sexual assault against a minor when authorities in March first accused her of molesting a 15-year-old boy.
In an indictment unsealed this week, Formella was hit with an additional 52 charges as authorities outlined a wider scope of the alleged abuse. The new charges include multiple counts of grooming and indecent solicitation of a child.
Prosecutors say Formella, a former special education teacher at Downers Grove South High School, molested her victim more than 45 times, both at school and inside the home she shares with her husband.
Formella, who has pleaded not guilty, attended a hearing Tuesday and walked into court hand in hand with her spouse, according to Abby Escobar, true-crime digital creator known by the moniker “Abby Blabby.”
“I don’t think he had a clue the severity of what was going on until the prosecutor read everything off in the court hearing,” she told “Banfield” on Wednesday. “I think he was just as shocked as everybody else.”
Formella reportedly has accused the student of stalking her and gaining access to her phone to put incriminating information on it. Prosecutors in DuPage County sought to have her detained before trial but said the judge in the case denied their motion.
Under conditions of her release, Formella cannot go into the school where she worked, and she cannot have contact with the victim or anyone younger than 18, prosecutors said.
