Buckeye police arrest former teacher on kidnapping charges

PHOENIX — The Buckeye Police Department arrested a former teacher on Wednesday and charged him with luring and kidnapping a student.

Brendan Barnett, 36, is in custody after an investigation into online chats he allegedly had with a 12-year-old female student.

School district officials contacted police in April and reported possible inappropriate chats between Barnett, a Verrado Middle School teacher at the time, and the student within the school’s online communications portal.

According to police, Barnett lied to the victim’s parents when inviting her to his central Phoenix home for sleepovers, claiming he was the parent of another female Verrado Middle School student who would be attending the sleepovers.

Barnett does not have a daughter at Verrado Middle School and was alone with the victim at his home at least three times.

A Maricopa County Grand Jury indicted Barnett on one count of luring a minor for sex and three counts of kidnapping.

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