Woman, 29, arrested for posing as High School student and attending classes
Jake Massey
Featured Image Credit: CBS News
A 29-year-old woman has been arrested after she posed as a student and attended classes at a US high school.
Hyejeong Shin allegedly used fake documents to enrol at New Brunswick High School, New Jersey, which she attended for four days.
Shin is accused of using a fake birth certificate to verify her age and has been charged with a third-degree charge for providing a false government document.
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She was arrested on Tuesday (24 January) and the news was subsequently shared at a board meeting, with a photo of Shin circulated among students and parents.
"By filing false documents, an adult female posing as a student was able to be enrolled in our high school," New Brunswick Superintendent Aubrey Johnson said at the meeting.
"She was in a few classes, and then most of the time in our Guidance Suite as we were trying to get more information from her."
He added: "She was here for four days before being found out, and barred from entering the district property.
"All appropriate authorities were immediately notified, and the individual in question has now been arrested for providing false documentation."
According to New Brunswick Today, she was 'found out' after the district was unable to identify her parents.
In a statement, New Brunswick Police Department said: "Proof of guardianship is not necessary to immediately enrol an unaccompanied child or youth.
"Although a school district might request documents such as a birth certificate to verify a child's age, a school district may not prevent or discourage a child, including an unaccompanied child, from enrolling in or attending school because he or she lacks a birth certificate or has records that indicate a foreign place of birth, such as a foreign birth certificate."
Prior to her arrest, students at the school said they saw her in classrooms and walking through hallways, with some apparently receiving texts from Shin asking if they wanted to meet up.
One student told CBS New York: "Some of the girls I know, the girl did ask them to hang out at Commercial Avenue, but they never showed up and she started acting weird with them.
"It's scary because you never know what could happen."
Another added: "She was pretending to be a freshman, which is more surprising because I don't believe she looks like a freshman."
As the police investigation continues, the school superintendent said the district will reexamine its enrolment and identity verification process.