Former school aide arrested for allegedly sexually abusing relative
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IDAHO FALLS — A man has been arrested on charges of sexually abusing an underage female relative.
Jason Travis Scott, 48, was arrested Oct. 29 after a 16-year-old girl told her mother Scott had allegedly sexually abused her for several years, from the time she was nine to when she turned 13. Scott is facing one felony count of lewd conduct with a child under 16. The charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
According to court documents, after being encouraged to accompany Scott on a trip to Utah, the young victim told her mother “(Scott) used to touch me,” but refused to explain what she meant or elaborate.
During a forensic interview, the victim explained various sex acts Scott allegedly performed on her and forced her to perform on him.
She told the forensic interviewer, on several occasions when she was alone with Scott he allegedly touched her private areas and performed sex acts on her after instructing her to remove her clothes. He also allegedly masturbated while making her stand naked in front of him.
The victim said she learned what Scott was allegedly doing to her was wrong when she was in middle school. Scott allegedly kept touching her inappropriately even after she told him to stop.
According to documents, when Scott was questioned by investigators he admitted to much of the abuse the victim described. He allegedly said he was ashamed and had told the victim he would never touch the victim again.
“Jason also commented that he didn’t think this has hurt their relationship since (the abuse occurred),” investigators noted in court documents.
Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Bryan Lovell confirmed Scott is also under investigation for a “possible relationship” he had with a student at Hillcrest High School though no charges have been filed as of yet.
Scott was hired as an American Sign Language interpreter for Hillcrest High School in August 2017.
District 93 Superintendent Dr. Charles Shackett told EastIdahoNews.com Scott was terminated in 2018 after a student’s mother reported inappropriate text messages found between Scott and her daughter.
Lovell said the ongoing investigation began in April, and investigators are currently waiting to obtain information from a “social media company” before proceeding.
Scott was released to pretrial services Nov. 7. He is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on Nov. 16.