Kivalina substitute teacher solicited nude photos from girls, FBI says

A former substitute teacher at the McQueen School in the village of Kivalina in Northwest Alaska was arrested this week on federal child exploitation charges, the U.S. Attorney’s office said Thursday.

Jayson Knox, 21, is accused of sending and asking for naked pictures from several girls at the school, according to an affidavit by FBI special agent Jolene Goeden filed with the charges on Thursday. He’s also accused of attempting to meet with girls for sexual interactions, according to the affidavit.

Knox is accused of inappropriate communications with 10 children, according to a release form the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Knox, known by the nickname “Birdie,” started working at the school as a substitute teacher in 2018, the FBI agent wrote in the affidavit.

The McQueen School has around 140 students, according to its website.

In September, several students at the school told a teacher that Knox had asked them to meet and to send him nude pictures, according to the affidavit. In January, Alaska State Troopers interviewed children at the school as well as Knox, the document says.

Troopers contacted Goeden with the FBI about the case on Feb. 3, the document says.

In a Feb. 7 interview with special agent Goeden, Melkerson, the school’s principal said a girl had told him that Knox “was looking at her weird,” the affidavit said.

Days later, several girls told a teacher at the school that Knox had asked for naked pictures, according to to the affidavit.

Knox was arrested on charges of attempted exploitation of a child, transfer of obscene material to a minor and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.

If convicted, Knox could be sentenced to life in prison and at a minimum of 10 years behind bars, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The FBI is requesting that if the public has any further information regarding Knox’s activities, they should call (907) 276-4441.