A teacher and coach in Winnsboro Independent School District was jailed for having sex with a high school student.
Nicholas Tyronne Gabriel, 30, was arrested Thursday and charged with improper relationship between educator and student, a second-degree felony punishable by 2 to 20 years in prison.
Gabriel was a football coach, assistant boys’ basketball coach, and teacher at Winnsboro High School during the 2024-25 school year.
The Wood County Sheriff’s Office stated Thursday that they had received information from community members accusing Gabriel of having sex with a student.
Investigators found evidence of sexual intercourse between Gabriel and a high school senior and obtained a warrant for the teacher’s arrest.
Officers located Gabriel in his hometown of Ennis, where he was taken into custody. Authorities said he admitted to the sexual misconduct.
Gabriel was booked into the Ellis County Jail on June 5 and is being held on a total bond of $53,072 for the felony charge and five Class C misdemeanor traffic offenses.
After Gabriel was jailed, the district released a statement indicating that a “former employee” had been arrested and that the individual had “previously resigned from Winnsboro ISD, prior to these accusations coming to light.”
“He is no longer an employee of the District and is no longer associated with Winnsboro ISD in any capacity,” the June 5 statement read.
As of Friday, June 6, Gabriel was still listed in the district’s online staff roster.
State records show that Gabriel does not hold a Texas teaching certificate.
Before becoming a coach, Gabriel was a varsity football player at Ennis High School and team captain in his senior year. He graduated in 2014, then played football at Midwestern State University, where he majored in Criminal Justice.
Hundreds of Texas teachers, coaches, and school employees have been accused of sex crimes involving students and other children in just the past few years.
Thousands of cases of educator sexual misconduct have been reported to the state since the TEA began keeping organized records in 2021.
No ads. No paywalls. No government grants. No corporate masters.
Just real news for real Texans.
Support Texas Scorecard to keep it that way!
