Former Elementary School Teacher Sentenced to Life in Prison for Sexually Abusing Children

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Stefan Zappey sexually abused four of his former elementary school students between 2006 and 2010.

At the time, Zappey taught first through third-grade students at an elementary school in Germany.

The school is part of the Department of Defense Education Activity, which serves dependents of U.S. military service members stationed overseas.

“Zappey abused a position of trust as an elementary school teacher and sexually abused multiple students,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia. “His crimes were horrific, and the community is safer now that he no longer has access to children.”

In 2020, one of Zappey’s former students notified Army criminal investigators that Zappey touched her under her clothing when she was a student at the school in 2009 and 2010.

Further investigation revealed that Zappey sexually abused four of his former students by placing his hand inside their underwear and directly touching them on multiple occasions.

The victims were between six and eight years old during the sexual abuse. According to officials, other students and faculty members reported that Zappey frequently hugged students, had them sit on his lap, and touched their backs and stomachs under their clothes.

On Jan. 18, a jury convicted Zappey of four counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and four counts of abusive sexual contact.

“Cases like these demonstrate the FBI’s dedication to protecting children from those who seek to exploit their innocence,” said Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. 

The FBI and Army CID investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Eduardo Palomo of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leanne M. Marek for the Northern District of Georgia prosecuted the case.