A Miami-Dade middle school teacher touched, messaged and gave gifts to a student, cops say

From a special stash of snacks to sexual social media messages to inappropriate touching, a department head at a Miami-Dade middle school pursued an inappropriate relationship with a 13-year-old student throughout the current school year, Miami-Dade Schools police say.

And, investigators say they learned that this isn’t the first time Mohammed Ahmed has behaved this way toward a student at Country Club Middle School, 18305 NW 75th Pl.

But, neither that nor the “adolescent male erotica” investigators say they found on Ahmed’s iPhone were the stated reason for Monday’s arrest of Ahmed on charges of child abuse without great bodily harm; tampering with a victim; and offenses against students by an authority figure.

The arrest warrant said Ahmed, 28, took advantage of his right to remain silent after his arrest. He was released after posting bond.

The charged events are alleged to have happened during the 2022-23 school year. When an investigation began Jan. 25, Ahmed was reassigned and told to have no contact with students.

A statement by Miami-Dade County Public Schools said:

“Miami-Dade County Public Schools is deeply troubled by the allegations of inappropriate conduct made against this individual. When administration was alerted of the claims, he was removed from the school setting. After a thorough investigation by the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department, this individual was subsequently arrested. The District has initiated employment termination proceedings, and will ensure the individual is precluded from seeking future employment with the District.”

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What a student said happened four years ago

As of Tuesday morning, the online staff directory said Ahmed was an Exceptional Student Education Department Chairman in Social Studies. MDCPS said Ahmed’s been with the school system for four years.

After detectives began investigating Ahmed in January, the arrest paperwork says, they learned he acted similarly to a student during the 2018-19 school year. That student told investigators on Jan. 31 that Ahmed let him miss classes and stay in Ahmed’s classroom. The student also said he talked about his girlfriend to Ahmed.

When the student told Ahmed he was thinking of getting back together with his girlfriend, the report says, “Ahmed, then, while (the student) was sitting in his desk chair, got down on his hands and knees and begged (the student) while touching the student’s knee not to reconcile with his girlfriend.”

Basketball gifts, privileges and declarations of lifelong love

What follows regarding Ahmed’s actions toward the current student comes from the arrest affidavit.

Ahmed hosted the 13-year-old in his classroom when the student wanted to skip classes without permission and, the student said, made up excuses for him. He sometimes did the student’s math homework. He kept snacks in a locked office cabinet especially for the student (the combination to the cabinet’s lock? The student’s birthday).

On that birthday, along with a Miami Heat hat, personalized metal basketball wall art and sunglasses, Ahmed also gave the boy a card saying, “Thank you for being such an amazing little brother. Meeting you and becoming your big brother is the best thing that has ever happened to me! I hope this year is the best you will have so far! I look forward to celebrating a lifetime of birthdays with you. I love you so much! With lots of love, Momo.”

“Momo,” the arrest report said, also bought the student matching bracelets with “Momo” and his nickname for the student.

“Multiple witnesses” at the school told investigators that the boy’s picture was Ahmed’s cell phone home screen. That was one of the over 25 saved photos of the student on Ahmed’s phone, photos either taken personally or saved from Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp or the school yearbook.

Also on his phone, Ahmed told the student, was video of the student in a fight. The student kept a screenshot of the text in which Ahmed said he’d protect the student from the fight’s consequences.

The student also had screenshots of Ahmed “professing his love” in text messages. The student also recalled an incident in a locked school office during which Ahmed took his shirt off “then took (the student’s) hand and placed it on his stomach and forced (the student) to feel his abdominal muscles” before Ahmed lifted the boy’s shirt to check out his abs. On another occasion, the boy said, Ahmed chased him around an empty classroom before catching him, hugging the boy from behind and tickling him.

When investigators checked out the student’s phone, they found Ahmed messaged the student via Facetime, Instagram, WhatsApp, Snapchat and Oculus at all hours. The boy said Ahmed “engaged in numerous conversations with him describing how a person should be sexually satisfied.”

On Jan. 28, the student’s father sent Ahmed a message telling him to stay away from the child “and that he will see him in court.”

“Mohammed Ahmed’s manipulative actions and behavior toward (the student) were performed knowingly and willfully, which caused mental abuse to the well being of (the student),” an investigating detective wrote in the warrant. “Ahmed’s actions and behaviors were solely for his own gratification.”