DENVER – A paraeducator at Quist Middle School in Thornton has been charged with s*xual assault on a child after allegedly engaging in a s*xual relationship with a student at the school, according to prosecutors.
Cathia Covarrubias Ruiz, 24, faces counts of s*xual assault on a child, s*xual assault on a child – pattern of abuse, and s*xual assault on a child by one in a position of trust, according to the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office. All three counts are felonies.
The alleged s*xual relationship happened while Ruiz was working as a paraeducator at the school between October 2021 and January of this year.
Ruiz is due to make a court appearance Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in Adams County District Court. According to court records, Ruiz was still in jail on Wednesday but had a $20,000 bond set in the case.
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27J Schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon. No other information about the allegations was released Wednesday.
“All of 27J Schools are very sad and angered by the alleged inappropriate relationship of a former employee with a student. Based on the charges brought against the defendant, we find this situation deeply disturbing and traumatic.
“Our first priority is the care and support of the victim. We have offered support to the victim’s family and will continue to offer ongoing support.
“This matter is still under investigation and there’s limited information we can share. However, because we value transparency with our families, earlier this week we reached out to our school parent community to let them know about the allegation and the nature of law enforcement’s investigation.”
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