MARION COUNTY, Fla. – A substitute teacher in Marion County has been arrested following allegations of inappropriate behavior with a student, the sheriff’s office says.

Dianely Torres, 24, was taken into custody Wednesday after an investigation revealed troubling communications and interactions with a minor, officials said.

According to an arrest affidavit, the investigation began on Feb. 21 when a school resource officer was alerted by an assistant principal about the behavior, which was reported by a student. The student claimed to have seen Torres massaging another student’s head during class, according to authorities.

The incident prompted further inquiry into Torres‘s interactions with students.

Witnesses reported that several students, including the victim, were in regular contact with Torres through the messaging platform Discord.

It was revealed that Torres had previously been disciplined for inappropriate messaging with students in December. Despite warnings, she continued to communicate with students, including the victim, the sheriff’s office said.

As the investigation progressed, law enforcement obtained consent to search the victim’s computer and cellphone. A digital forensic technician conducted an extraction of the victim’s phone, revealing deleted messages that indicated inappropriate exchanges between Torres and the victim, according to officials.

The messages included discussions about explicit content and requests for the victim to delete inappropriate exchanges, the arrest affidavit states.

On Wednesday, deputies located Torres and conducted a post-Miranda interview. During questioning, she admitted to being in a “dating” relationship with the victim, acknowledging that he was a former student, the affidavit revealed.

Torres confessed to sending nude photographs of herself to the victim and receiving explicit images in return, officials said. She also admitted to engaging in sexual acts with the victim on multiple occasions, the arrest affidavit states.

Torres was charged with possession of child sexual abuse material and transmission of material harmful to minors. She was booked into the Marion County Jail, where she remains pending further investigation.

According to Marion County Schools, Dianely Torres was an employee of ESS, the company the district uses for substitute teachers. As required by Florida law, she completed and passed a national criminal background check and submitted fingerprints to work in the district. She started working for ESS in December, was fired as of Feb. 20 and has not been on any MCPS campus since that time.

The principal at Horizon Academy at Marion Oaks acknowledged Torres’ arrest in a Wednesday email to parents:

“Good evening, Horizon, this is Principal Cook. Today, a worker with the ESS substitute company Marion County Public Schools works with was arrested and charged with possession of child pornography and transmitting harmful material to a minor after several weeks of an investigation with Law Enforcement. When the complaint was lodged, the ESS worker was immediately removed from the classroom, an investigation was completed, the ESS substitute company was made aware, and the worker was escorted off campus and has not been on any school property since. If you have questions regarding this case, please contact the Marion County Sherriff’s Office.”

Detectives believe there may be additional victims. Anyone with information that could assist the investigation is urged to call Detective Batts at (352) 368-3847.