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Thirty-one-year-old Jeremy Schobel of Philadelphia, who teaches English at Harriton High School in Lower Merion, is charged with multiple federal crimes, FBI agents said in charging documents.
According to a criminal complaint filed Thursday, June 8, investigators believe Schobel was posing as a 17-year-old on an app called Yubo to contact underage victims. From there, authorities said Schobel directed the conversation to Snapchat, where he asked for explicit photos.
Yubo moderators forwarded the information to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, writing: "This report is for online grooming. This Adult age male registered in the app as 17 years old female."
Federal investigators later found two Snapchat accounts under the same usernames as the Yubo accounts, according to the documents. Those accounts had been accessed from an address in Philadelphia and from Harriton High School, the feds said.
After his arrest on Tuesday, June 7, FBI agents claimed Schobel "admitted to creating both fake profiles" and "advised agents that he had committed these crimes for years."
In a statement from the Lower Merion School District, administrators said Schobel's employment was suspended and that they are cooperating with investigators.
"While we understand that this is an ongoing investigation, at this time, LMSD is not aware of any inappropriate interactions between Mr. Schobel and LMSD students," they said. "Additionally, the District had not received any complaints or concerns from students or staff regarding his conduct in school."
Counselors will be available for Harriton students and staff "who need support in light of this disturbing news," administrators added.
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