A 22-year-old woman from Florida, Alyssa Ann Zinger, has been apprehended by the police on charges of posing as a 14-year-old homeschooled student to exploit middle school children sexually. The police reported that Zinger allegedly committed over 30 sexual acts with at least one student and disseminated explicit videos to several others.
The Tampa Police Chief, Lee Bercaw, expressed his dismay at the incident, urging any potential victims of Zinger to step forward. He assured that the Tampa Police Department would provide support and protection to prevent further harm from Zinger.
According to a search warrant obtained by the Tampa Bay Times, Zinger allegedly created a false identity and interacted with her victims primarily through social media, particularly Snapchat. Several victims from Wilson Middle School in Tampa’s Hyde Park neighborhood informed the police that they believed Zinger was their peer and was homeschooled. The Tampa police suspect there may be more victims.
The warrant also revealed that Zinger allegedly began a sexual relationship with one of the victims in May, which continued until September. The victim, a boy aged between 12 and 15, reported that he had multiple sexual encounters with Zinger, who also sent him explicit photos and videos. Another victim claimed that Zinger sent a video depicting sexual intercourse to several children via Snapchat. Zinger reportedly confessed to one victim that she had engaged in sexual activities with other minors.
In an incident in July, Zinger and one of the children were apprehended for shoplifting at a Nordstrom. Zinger allegedly attempted to maintain her false identity, telling an officer she was born in 2009, a claim the officer could not immediately verify. The officer later found that the only other Alyssa Ann Zinger he could locate was born in 2001. In a desperate bid to deceive, Zinger claimed she had a half-sister with the same name.
The police had been investigating Zinger for approximately a year, according to the warrant. Her lies were eventually exposed when the officer requested government, school, and employment records and confirmed with her employers at Tampa Publix that she was an adult. A few months later, one of her victims came forward about Zinger’s alleged inappropriate behavior.
Zinger has been charged with two counts of lewd and lascivious battery, and five counts of lewd or lascivious molestation on a victim between the ages of 12 and 15 years old. She pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released from jail on the day of her arrest after posting a $7,500 bond for each of her second-degree felony charges.