Former Edmonton music teacher sentenced to 32 months for sexual interference

Alyssa Tungul, 31, was found guilty in July of sexual assault and sexual interference. (Photo provided.)

A former Edmonton music teacher has been sentenced to 32 months in prison for comitting a sex crime against a 15-year-old male former student.

Alyssa Tungul, 31, was found guilty in July of sexual assault and sexual interference.

On Thursday, Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Susan Bercov sentenced the teacher to more than  2 1/2 years for sexual interference.

“Ms. Tungul was in a position of trust because she was the complainant’s teacher,” Bercov said.

Bercov cited Tungul’s position of trust over the then-teen as a “significant aggravating factor.”

“He was a particularly vulnerable individual,” Bercov said.

The sexual assault charge was stayed.

Crown prosecutors cited her position of authority and trust over the victim in seeking a sentence of between four and five years.

But, Bercov ruled that term would have been too harsh, citing the loss of Tungul’s teaching career as a mitigating factor.

“Teaching was a very important part of her life,” Bercov said. “This is a significant loss for her.”

Tungul’s defence lawyer, Brian Vale, had sought a sentence of between 15 and 24 months to be served in the community, noting Tungul’s “otherwise blameless life.”

“She did commit a serious offence against a youth. But that was out of character for her,” he said.

Bercov also rejected that suggested sentence as too light, again citing Tungul’s position of trust over her victim.

Tungul resigned as a teacher last March but had been on administrative leave since December of 2018 and suspended since May 2019.

“There is zero chance that she’ll ever teach again,” said Vale.

The student is now in his 20s and his identity remains protected by a publication ban.

Tungul was his music teacher in junior high and maintained a relationship with him after he graduated into high school, the court heard.

At trial, both the student and Tungul testified that they had sexual encounters but disagreed on who prompted those meetings and how often they happened.

She admitted to having sex with him in the basement of his cousin's house, but said he forced himself on her. The student told court the sex was consensual.

She was convicted of sexual interference in connection with a later incident where she performed oral sex on him in her car.

In her ruling, Bercov described the relationship as "inappropriate" and "improper."

"It is possible, even likely that this was developing or developed into an improper sexual relationship," Bercov ruled.

Tungul had pleaded not guilty to initial charges of sexual assault and unlawful touching of a person under the age of 16.