CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A Chesapeake Public Schools employee—who school officials confirmed was a teacher at Deep Creek Middle School—is accused of committing several child pornography crimes, including taking pictures of a student without her knowledge, Chesapeake police alleged in court documents.
Jordan Palomares, 25, was arrested Tuesday and faces four felony charges of possessing child pornography, police say. He’s being held without bond.
Chesapeake school officials say they were made aware of Palomares' arrest Tuesday afternoon and immediately placed him on administrative leave.
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According to a criminal complaint obtained by News 3, Palomares was arrested after police executed search warrants for his home and car.
When searching his laptop, police found an image of child pornography and a hidden folder, according to the criminal complaint. The hidden folder had images of a student taken on September 23 and it looked like she wasn’t aware the pictures were being taken, documents state.
Documents say police gathered evidence that indicates Palomares distributed three child pornography videos via Snapchat. The videos were uploaded by a Snapchat account associated with Palomares’ email and phone number, documents say. The account uploaded the videos and shared them with other Snapchat users in a chat in June, according to documents.
After he was taken into custody, Palomares confessed that he has an addiction to child pornography, documents say.
Chesapeake Public Schools shared an email with News 3 that Superintendent Dr. Jared Cotton sent to the Deep Creek Middle School community on Thursday. That email is as follows:
Dear Deep Creek Middle School Families,
There has been some discussion in the media about an employee at Deep Creek Middle School who has been arrested for possession of child pornography. I want to provide some clarification about the recent timeline of events to ensure you have accurate information.
On the afternoon of October 1, 2024, Chesapeake Public Schools (CPS) was notified of the charges and arrest resulting from the execution of a search warrant that morning. Upon receiving this information, the teacher was immediately placed on administrative leave. The October 1, 2024, notification was the first time law enforcement communicated with the school system about this matter.
As part of our commitment to student safety, all CPS employees undergo comprehensive evaluation prior to employment. This includes fingerprinting through the Virginia State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), as well as the Virginia Department of Social Services Central Registry background check for school personnel.
This matter is part of an ongoing police investigation, and CPS is fully cooperating with law enforcement. While we understand that this news is unsettling, please be assured that the safety and well-being of our students are our top priorities.
We appreciate your understanding and continued support.
Sincerely,
Dr. Jared A. Cotton
Superintendent
