41-year-old Robbinsdale Cooper High School hall monitor and football team staffer was charged with sexually assaulting a 17-year-old student after the girl’s father walked in on them in her bedroom.
Tajreed Rich, of Minneapolis, was charged with felony third-degree criminal sexual conduct. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment and up to $30,000 in fines with conditional release.
Rich told police he had previously counseled the girl about past relationships with male students. He described the girl as a “vulnerable student” to police and said he knew better than to have a sexual relationship with a student.
According to the charges, the pair was discovered after the girl’s father came home unexpectedly around 3 p.m. Friday and heard sounds from his daughter’s bedroom. The room was open and he reported finding his daughter naked on the bed and Rich, also naked, standing over her.
The girl confirmed she had sex with Rich on two separate occasions — once within the past few weeks at Rich’s home, and again on Friday for the second time. Rich also confirmed that information in a post-Miranda interview with officers, further admitting that he did not wear a condom.
FOX 9 News spoke with one of Rich’s family members at his home on north Minneapolis who described the situation as a “nightmare.” According to the family, Rich had daughters and a son who attended Cooper High School and recently graduated.
