Teaching assistant convicted for grooming a 15-year-old with sex toys and handcuffs

Melanie Rock, 34, worked as a communications support assistant at Medina College on the Isle of Wight when she started an Instagram conversation with a 15-year-old student who had been removed from class for misconduct. Their meetings escalated: Rock gave the boy about $60, later took him to her home, and invited him to "enjoy her room," where she showed him handcuffs, black see-through lingerie and various sex toys. She also bought him disposable vapes and Trapstar clothing valued at almost $500, and let him vape on her bed while hugging him.

Their relationship was exposed when another Medina College teacher saw them together at a Pizza Hut and reported the incident. Police arrested Rock two days later; she claimed she was merely trying to look after the boy. A jury took just under two hours to find her guilty of sexual grooming and sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust, with sentencing set for December.