NEW YORK CITY — A Queens teacher has been arrested for carrying out a nine month sexual affair with a 14-year-old girl whom he first met as his elementary school student, officials said.
Daniel Reilly, 36, initially reached out to the victim in an August text message and repeatedly lured her to his Forest Hills apartment up until this month, according to the Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown.
"This case is particularly disturbing. Schools should be safe havens for children. Instead, this defendant is accused of sexually preying upon one of his former students," Brown said in a Tuesday statement.
The victim did not attend I.S. 237, in Flushing, where Reilly taught sixth grade English, according to Brown. The school at which they met was not immediately known.
The affair first came to light when the victim's sister saw a sexually explicit text message on the victim's phone and notified officials Monday, Brown said.
Reilly has been charged with rape, committing a criminal sexual act, sexual abuse, and endangering the welfare of a child, according to the DA.
If convicted, he faces up to seven years in prison.
The Department of Education did not immediately respond to an email for comment.
