A Florida woman is accused of posing as a teenager and engaging in sex acts with a middle school boy dozens of times in a case that police say could involve multiple victims, WFLA-TV reports.
Authorities say 22-year-old Alyssa Zinger met the victim on social media while she was pretending to be a 14-year-old home-school student.
The boy, who was between 12 and 15 years old and a student at Woodrow Wilson Middle School in Tampa, told police that he and Zinger engaged in sexual activity around 30 times over four months, according to a police report obtained by WTSP-TV.
At one point in the relationship, the pair were caught shoplifting in July from a Nordstrom department store, where Zinger allegedly claimed to be 14 years old.
The victim is said to have believed that Zinger was 14 but that he also told investigators she “physically seemed much older than her age,” according to WFLA-TV.
Tampa police received a tip on October 19 that Zinger may have sent inappropriate material involving the boy and another middle school student to other minors on Snapchat.
Zinger allegedly told the boy that she had engaged in sexual activity with other boys who were between the ages of 13 and 15, prompting police to search for other potential victims.
In a statement, Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw urged anyone with information to come forward.
“It is disturbing and unsettling to see an adult take advantage of a child and prey on them,” Bercaw said in a press release, according to WTSP-TV. “Anyone who may have been a victim of Zinger’s, we encourage you to come forward. The Tampa Police Department will support you and ensure a predator like Zinger doesn’t cause you or others additional harm.”
Police arrested Zinger on November 24 on two counts of lewd or lascivious battery and five counts of lewd or lascivious molestation. She was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail but has since been released. She has pleaded not guilty, according to WTSP-TV.
Upon learning of the case, officials at Hillsborough County Public Schools said they are investigating as well.
“This did not happen at our school. However, we are grateful that a student felt safe enough to come to a trusted adult on campus alerting them about this individual,” the school district said in a statement, according to Fox 13. “Our staff immediately contacted law enforcement so they could begin an investigation.”
To report information about Zinger, call the Tampa Police Department at 813-231-6130.
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[Feature Photo: Alyssa Zinger/Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office]
