Former educational assistant facing sexual assault, luring charges in northern Alberta

Educational assistant charged with sex offences An educational assistant in northern Alberta has been charged with a number of sex offences.

A 21-year-old woman who recently worked at a school in Hythe, Alta., has been charged with several sex offences and police believe there may be more victims yet to come forward.

On Oct. 12, Beaverlodge RCMP began investigating a report that an educational assistant at Hythe Regional School was distributing sexually explicit photos.

Maddison Peterson, who lives in Grande Prairie County, was arrested on Saturday.

Police said "more than one victim" has been identified but a spokesperson declined to give an exact number or say how old they are.

"At the time of the offences, Peterson had briefly been working as an Educational Assistant at Hythe Regional School of the Peace Wapiti School Board," Cpl. Troy Savinkoff wrote in a news release.

"Beaverlodge RCMP believe there may be additional victims and encourage those individuals to come forward."

Peterson is facing charges of:

Hythe Regional School teaches kids from Kindergarten to Grade 9 and is part of the Peace Wapiti Public School Division (PWPSD).

"While the incidents did not occur at the school, as soon as the division became aware that Ms. Peterson had allegedly engaged in inappropriate conduct towards its students, the school principal called and reported the concerns to the RCMP," superintendent Bob Stewart wrote in a statement.

Stewart said Peterson was fired immediately.

"As this situation involved a risk to student safety, the parents of affected students were informed of the situation and of the supports that are available to PWPSD students and their families," he added.

She has been released on conditions and is scheduled to appear in Grande Prairie Provincial Court on Feb. 6.

Victims in this case and anyone else with information is asked to call Beaverlodge RCMP at 780-345-2485 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS.)

Hythe is located roughly 500 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.