LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — A teacher in Arkansas has been arrested after having an alleged sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy while working as a volunteer at a local church.
Reagan Gray, 26, is not only accused of having a sexual relationship with the male teen, but of also bombarding him with nude photos even after an earlier investigation, THV11 reported.
Gray was taken into custody earlier this month after an investigation revealed she had reportedly been involved in sex acts with the minor since 2020 when she was working as a volunteer at the Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock.
According to court documents, the boy’s parents first discovered a slew of inappropriate text messages on their son’s phone and reported the woman to a senior pastor at the church.
Gray, who also worked as a teacher at Little Rock Christian Academy, was removed from her volunteer position, the New York Post reported.
While undergoing church counseling, she reportedly told leaders that the relationship wasn’t “physical.” She was subsequently reinstated as a volunteer in the youth program.
Gray allegedly began engaging the boy in sex acts when she worked as a volunteer at the Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock. (Google Maps)
In February, law enforcement authorities got involved when it became known that Gray continued to exchange messages with the boy via Snapchat, according to court documents.
The teen underwent a Child and Adolescent Forensic Interview conducted by the FBI. During the interview, the minor shared that he and the woman engaged in sexual contact on several occasions.
The boy said Gray had given him oral sex, but they didn’t have intercourse so he could “stay pure.” The sexual activity occurred nearly a dozen times, taking place in the woman’s car or apartment, the teen said, according to court documents.
The boy also disclosed that Gray sent nude photos of herself to him on a daily basis and expected nude images in return.
In a follow-up interview in February, the lead pastor of the church disclosed that in the Fall of 2023, Gray acknowledged to him during a counseling session that her relationship with the minor back in 2020 was sexual in nature, THV11 reported.
It wasn’t immediately clear who first notified law enforcement authorities of the ongoing sexual trysts.
Meanwhile, Gray — who now works at Sylvan Hills Middle School — was placed on administration leave in February as the criminal investigation got underway.
The church leader resigned from his position earlier this month over the handling of the allegations, the New York Post reported.
Gray was arrested and formally charged with sex-related crimes. She was subsequently released from custody after posting a $20,000 bond.
On a side note, former President Bill Clinton previously attended Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock. He talked about how important the Southern Baptist church was for him when he thanked the congregation during a morning service days before first entering the White House in 1993.
“Were it not for this church … I believe it would be virtually impossible (that) I would be going to Washington next week as president,” Clinton told worshippers, according to a Los Angeles Times report from the time. “And I am absolutely certain I would be less prepared for the job.”
