A former science teacher in the Boston Public Schools was sentenced to ten years in prison this week for various counts of child abuse, including coercing at least one underage girl into sharing sexual images of herself in an online conversation.
John Magee Gavin, 35, of Brookline, was arrested last year after investigators discovered he had sexual interactions with females aged 12 to 17 on the messaging platform Discord, during which he frequently urged them to send him explicit photos of themselves, federal authorities stated.
According to the office of US Attorney Leah B. Foley, officials discovered a variety of photographs and videos on Gavin’s cellphone after his arrest in February 2025, portraying the sexual exploitation of teenagers and young children.
According to Foley’s office, Gavin had worked at the Academy of the Pacific Rim Charter Public School in Hyde Park and the Brookline Public Schools before teaching at Josiah Quincy Upper School in Boston’s Chinatown district.
In December, he pled guilty to charges of coercing and enticing a kid, as well as receiving and possessing exploitative photos of children.
On Thursday, Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV sentenced Gavin to ten years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
Gavin engaged in online talks with at least 20 minor girls from the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada, according to Foley’s office. In communications, he mentioned his job as a teacher.
He had several sexual internet discussions while at school. According to Foley’s office, Gavin indicated sexual interest in select pupils at Josiah Quincy on several occasions.
According to the US attorney, the Brookline Police Department, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office all supported federal investigators and prosecutors in the case.
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