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Almost nine months after she went missing, a schoolgirl has been found alive and living at the home of a former teacher, according to police.
The family of the 17-year-old has since accused Jobe Binkley, a former science teacher, of grooming her and has even alerted authorities on numerous occasions.
When the troubled teen ran away from a crisis center in Columbus, Ohio, in December last year, her family continuously asked cops to search Binkley’s home as they claimed to have evidence she had visited previously.
The mother of the teenager's half-sister, Chelsi Warner, told the police that the former teacher had taken advantage of her troubled relationship with her mother, and even gave them pictures of the schoolgirl that were allegedly taken at his house holding guns.
Warner told The New York Post: “She’s had a troubled history with her mother and this groomer took advantage of a girl looking for a parental figure.”
Expressing her concern for the girl, she added: ”It’s absolutely disgusting … and she’s so groomed and brainwashed by that man that she doesn’t see what he’s done to her.
“She’s had a troubled history with her mother and this groomer took advantage of a girl looking for a parental figure.
“We had photos of her in the house holding guns, and we know about the allegations from other students against this man, but we were always told there’s not enough evidence yet.”
The former Springfield City School District science teacher denied police entry to his home twice during the search for the missing teenager.
According to ABC Six, US Marshals’ special task force finally forcefully entered the home on August 21 and found the schoolgirl alive inside.
Initially, the ex-science teacher was arrested and charged with one count of interference with custody, a first-degree misdemeanor; however, he has been released on bond.
Binkley has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
This is not the first time that Binkley has been accused of forming inappropriate relationships with students.
In January 2015, Binkley was fired from Springfield City School for allegedly breaching the school’s technology policy.
