Teacher tries to meet ’14-year-old girl’ for sex acts, MO cops say. Now he’s charged
A “14-year-old girl” that a Missouri high school teacher engaged in sexually charged conversations with was actually an undercover police officer, authorities say.
Now, 33-year-old Geoffrey Butler, a teacher at Slater High School in Saline County, is charged following the series of messages sent to the officer, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Butler thought the officer was a 14-year-old girl from Iowa, and he began chatting with her on an undisclosed app in October, authorities said in a probable cause statement. He is accused of sending the “teen” photos, some of which showed the inside of his classroom.
“She tells Butler she is 14 years old and goes on to say she is in 9th grade,” according to a highway patrol investigator. “He tells her he teaches 9th grade.”
Butler is still listed on the school’s staff directory as of Jan. 13 as a language arts teacher and assistant athletic director.
Their conversations became more sexual, and within weeks he asked if they wanted to meet and get a hotel room, according to the court documents. In November, he said he would be traveling to Iowa and could pick her up.
Investigators said Butler attempted to “persuade, solicit, coax, entice or lure” the girl into sexual conduct. He also asked for explicit photos.
Butler was contacted by an investigator on Jan. 3 and said he had not been in contact with a girl from Iowa, authorities said. But a search of his phone revealed he had downloaded the app he was using to communicate with the undercover officer.
“I have reasonable grounds to believe that the defendant poses a threat to the community since he was online talking to who he thought was a 14-year-old child and told that child how they could have sex and he is employed as a high school teacher and coach,” the investigator said.
Court records show Butler was charged with enticement or attempted enticement of a child less than 15 years of age.
“We are aware of the situation and are cooperating fully with law enforcement as it investigates this matter,” Slater School District Superintendent Dr. Terry Lorenz told KCTV. “While the investigation is pending, we are unable to comment further there than to say that Mr. Butler is currently on administrative leave.”
He remains in the Saline County jail as of Jan. 13 on a $250,000 bond, jail records show.
Slater is about a 100-mile drive east from Kansas City.
This story was originally published January 13, 2025 at 3:18 PM with the headline "Teacher tries to meet ’14-year-old girl’ for sex acts, MO cops say. Now he’s charged."