A married Illinois special education teacher has been arrested for allegedly molesting a 15-year-old student during a tutoring session, according to prosecutors.
Christina Formella, 30, was busted in the Chicago suburb of Downers Grove on Sunday — days after a student told police she molested him in a Downers Grove South High School classroom in December 2023.
Formella — who married her college sweetheart in August 2024 — also coached soccer at the school.
Christina Formella, 30, was arrested Sunday for allegedly molesting a 15-year-old boy she was tutoring and coaching. Dupage County State's Attorney
Formella taught special education, tutored and coached soccer at Downers Grove South High. Facebook/Christina FormellaDuPage County prosecutors said Formella coached the boy and was his tutor, and the alleged sexual assault happened before the school day started.
She was 28 at the time of the alleged incident.
“The allegations against Ms. Formella are extremely disturbing,” DuPage County Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement.
“It is alleged that she used her position of trust and authority as a tutor and a coach to sexually assault a minor student. The type of abuse and behavior alleged in this case will not be tolerated.”
Wedding pictures from social media show her smiling last fall with her strapping new husband, who played baseball for their alma mater, Concordia University Chicago.
Formella, who married her college sweetheart in August 2024, also coached soccer at the school. X/CUCWSOCThe boy’s mother uncovered the alleged assault on Friday after she bought him a new phone and was linking it to his iCloud account, according to a DuPage County detention petition obtained by the Daily Herald.
She allegedly came across text messages between her son and Formella that discussed sexual contact — and even a relationship.
After confronting her son, they both went to the Downers Grove Police Department that day to report their allegations.
Police caught up with Formella during a traffic stop in the village on Sunday and arrested her.
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Formella is married to a former college athlete with whom she went to Concordia University Chicago.
She denied the allegations, the petition states, but prosecutors claim investigators uncovered more evidence indicating sexual contact between the two.
The boy reportedly ended their relationship.
Photos from Formella’s wedding over the summer that were shared on social media show her smiling with her strapping new husband, who played baseball for their alma mater, Concordia University Chicago.
Formella is charged with two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and one count of criminal sexual assault.
After her booking, Formella was released on the condition that she have no contact with anybody under the age of 18 and that she not enter Downers Grove South High School.
She was also placed on paid administrative leave from the school, according to the Herald.
Formella taught there since 2020 after receiving a teacher’s license in 2017 and volunteered as a soccer coach for both boys and girls beginning in 2021.
“We are devastated, and our community is reeling,” school principal Arwen Lyp wrote in a message to parents Monday.
“An adult has been charged with the most serious of violations, and trust has been broken. Our team is here to support students who are impacted by this terrible news.”
