Jan. 14--A Lincoln Park High School teacher is accused of having sex with a 15-year-old boy he met on the Internet, according to prosecutors.
Benjamin Zollo, 32, was ordered held on $750,000 bail on charges of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. Prosecutors said the boy was not a student at Lincoln Park, where Zollo taught history.
Zollo met the teen last fall after he messaged the boy online and the boy responded, prosecutors said in bond court Thursday. The boy said he was 15 and Zollo said he was 26, prosecutors said.
After exchanging messages for about a month and sending each other photos, the boy went to Zollo's home in the 1900 block of North Oakley Avenue, where they had sex before Zollo drove the teen back home, prosecutors said. They then met about every two weeks for sex, according to prosecutors.
In December, Zollo invited the teen to spend the night for New Year's Eve and the boy told authorities he sneaked out of his parents' home to meet Zollo. The next day, the teacher drove the boy home.
Prosecutors said the boy's parents were upset that he was gone all night and had called police. When his father confronted him, the boy admitted where he had been and he was taken to Holy Cross Hospital to be tested for sexual assault, according to prosecutors.
Days later, the parents went to court and secured a court order forbidding Zollo from contacting the boy. Zollo was arrested Wednesday at the school. He has no prior arrests, prosecutors said.
Zollo's attorney said he has a master's degree in education from National Louis University and had taught at Lincoln Park High School for a year. Calls to Lincoln Park were not immediately returned.
The Chicago Public Schools released a statement saying Zollo has been suspended "pending further review," and a substitute teacher is covering his classes for now.
"Due to the ongoing law enforcement investigation, we cannot comment further at this time," the statement said.
