A woman in South Carolina is in serious trouble after being accused of pretending to be someone else to get a job at an elementary school. Once she was working there, she allegedly attacked a student with special needs.
The woman, Bryia Lattimore Scott, was arrested two weeks ago and initially charged with identity fraud for unlawfully getting the job. But things got worse. More than a week after her first arrest, she was hit with another charge—felony unlawful conduct towards a child—for the alleged attack, according to the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office.
This unusual case began when the Laurens County School District 55 contacted the sheriff’s deputies earlier this month. They reported that someone had been “impersonating” another person to land a job at Waterloo Elementary School, a school located about 185 miles northwest of Charleston, South Carolina.
Investigators later found that Scott had been pretending to be someone named Viola Church. Using this fake identity, she started working as a temporary special education teacher in September. On December 19, Scott was arrested for identity fraud and released on a $5,000 bond.
Scott wasn’t directly hired by the school district but worked for Aya Healthcare, a staffing company that provides temporary workers for schools and other institutions. Aya Healthcare, known for helping traveling nurses find jobs, was stunned by the allegations. A spokesperson for the company said they were “deeply disturbed” and claimed Scott used fake documents to trick them.
The situation took another turn when Becca Craine, a parent of one of Scott’s students, explained that the school principal discovered Scott’s real identity thanks to an anonymous tip. This led to her initial arrest.
Things escalated further the day after Scott’s arrest. On December 20, a concerned parent contacted the sheriff’s office about an incident involving Scott and a child in her classroom. Investigators found that Scott had assaulted a special needs child two days before her first arrest. This assault was reported to the school’s administration on the same day by teacher aides who had witnessed the incident.
Scott was arrested for the second time on December 30 and charged with unlawful conduct towards a child. Sheriff Don Reynolds praised the teacher aides who came forward to report what they saw. He emphasized how important it is for everyone to look out for the safety and well-being of children.
Interestingly, not everyone saw this coming. Becca Craine, whose son was one of Scott’s students, initially had nothing but good things to say about her. Craine mentioned that Scott was a wonderful teacher who helped her son, who has severe autism, make incredible progress.
“The improvement I saw in my son was amazing,” Craine said before the unlawful conduct charge became public. “I absolutely loved her. Nobody had any idea she wasn’t who she said she was, and that’s just shocking.”
This case has left the local community shaken, with questions about how Scott managed to fool the system and how such incidents can be prevented in the future.
