Ohio social worker accused of having sexual relations with 13-year-old client

A licensed social worker in Columbus, Ohio, who worked as a counselor with the youth, was accused of engaging in unlawful sexual conduct with a 13-year-old client.

Payton Shires, 24, was arrested on Friday and charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, according to police records. She was taken into custody after a woman contacted the police on Sept. 27 and reported that she found text messages on her 13-year-old son's cellphone between him and Shires.

The woman believed "something inappropriate was happening between her son and Shires after seeing messages asking if he had deleted the videos and asking if his mom had seen the videos or messages."

The police conducted an investigation into the allegations and the teen's cellphone was turned over to the police and a forensic evaluation of the phone was conducted. A video of the two engaging in sexual activity was found by the police on the phone, according to court records.

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Detectives also spoke with the teen, who reportedly admitted to having sex with Shires on multiple occasions in September 2023 at various locations in Columbus.

On Thursday, police did a controlled, recorded, three-way phone call between the teen's mother and Shires. During that call, Shires admitted to the teen's mom that she had engaged in sexual conduct with him, said court records.

Shires appeared in the Franklin County Municipal Court on Saturday where a judge set a bond of $500,000.

Columbus police said Shires had previously been employed by the National Youth Advocate Program (NYAP), an organization that helps provide counseling and social work for families involved in the foster care system or need advocacy in other ways.

An attorney for Shires was not listed.

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Contributing: Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY