A former history teacher at District of Columbia International School pleaded guilty Monday to coercing and enticing a minor after federal prosecutors said he abused a 16-year-old student he taught, entering her bedroom through a window and recording the abuse on at least two occasions. John Aaron Gass, 35, of Hyattsville, Maryland, admitted the conduct began in the spring and continued after he met the girl outside school several times.
Gass entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan in federal court in Washington, D.C., with sentencing scheduled for December 11, 2026, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. As WJLA reports, Gass exchanged explicit images with the girl before admitting to the coercion and enticement charge, which had initially been paired with a separate charge of production of child pornography before his guilty plea.
How the Case Reached Federal Court
The station's report notes Gass was arrested in December, and the Justice Department has said the FBI received information from the Metropolitan Police Department after the victim disclosed the abuse, which MPD then relayed to federal investigators. Per the same account, the investigation into Gass started toward the end of November, when local police began looking into allegations before handing the case to federal authorities.
Federal prosecutors initially charged Gass with production of child pornography under 18 U.S.C. § 2251, a statutory charge carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison, the Department of Justice notes. The coercion and enticement charge he ultimately pleaded guilty to, under 18 U.S.C. § 2422(b), carries its own mandatory minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life imprisonment, per the department's own account of the statute.
A Teacher's Years at the Charter School
Gass joined the faculty of District of Columbia International School in August 2018 as an English teacher before moving into teaching history, a role he held until his employment ended in November 2025, according to the Justice Department. The school, located at 1400 Main Drive NW on the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus in Northwest D.C., is a tuition-free public charter serving more than 1,600 students in grades 6 through 12, per My School DC. The school has previously drawn note in Hoodline's own coverage as an active DC educational employer and among the district's top-rated charter middle schools.
District of Columbia International School is considered among D.C.'s higher-performing public charter secondary schools, recording a 92.4% four-year graduation rate, according to SchoolDigger. Whether the school conducted any administrative or safety policy review following Gass's dismissal and arrest remains an open question not addressed in available records.
Detention and a Wider Search for Victims
Following his arrest, federal prosecutors successfully sought pre-trial detention, and Gass has been held in custody without bond while the case proceeded, according to a report from Fox 5 DC. The FBI Washington Field Office's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force also issued a public appeal seeking information from potential additional victims after Gass's arrest, per the FBI.
The prosecution was brought under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Justice Department initiative established in February 2006 to coordinate federal, state, and local law enforcement resources against child sexual exploitation, the department said. Sentencing is set for December 11, when Gass will learn how much of the decade-to-life exposure he now faces under federal law.
