Indian Trail Orchestra Director Arrested For Sexual Contact With Student

Copied!
Nathan Gardner (27) – Indian Trail Orchestra Director
(Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department)

The orchestra director for KUSD’s Indian Trail High School and Academy is behind bars tonight. Nathan R. Gardner, 27, of Racine, WI was the subject of an eleven day investigation that concluded he committed several felonies. The Kenosha Police Student Resource Officer (SRO) at the high school was made aware of the disturbing allegations on October 26, 2023. KPD investigated and later learned that the allegations occurred in the Kenosha County Sheriff’s jurisdiction. Detectives from the Kenosha Sheriff’s Office began the investigation.

Paid Advertisement

According to the Kenosha Unified School District, Gardner was placed on administrative leave on or before November 1, 2023. Tanya Ruder, the district’s Chief Communications Officer didn’t respond to KCE’s inquiry as to the exact date he was placed on leave.

Paid Advertisement

Gardner was arrested Tuesday morning following a search warrant, according to a law enforcement source. KCE was made aware of these allegations last week, but delayed publication as to not jeopardize an ongoing investigation.

Paid Advertisement

According to a source close to the investigation, Gardner had a relationship with and was sexting with a 15-year-old boy. The boy was a Freshman at Indian Trail High school when they met on the “hook-up” site “Grindr.” According to its website, Grindr is the world’s largest “social networking app” for gay, bi, trans, and queer people.The child’s profile said he was 18, but later told Gardner he was only 15. The two met in person at the teen’s Somers home when Gardner brought him ice cream. The two kissed. The two would later send sexually explicit photos of each other. The boy later learned that Gardner was a teacher at ITA. Gardner told the boy not to tell anyone. The two maintained contact until the teen’s Junior year when they eventually stopped talking. Gardner used an alias on Grindr and was hesitant at first to send a photo of his face, but later did.

Paid Advertisement

The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department detective bureau asked Kenosha County DA Michael Graveley to charge Gardner with:

Paid Advertisement

Felony Child Enticement
Felony Use of Computer To Facilitate Sex Crime
Felony Exposing Child to Harmful Material, and
Misdemeanor Sending of Obscene Email Messages

Paid Advertisement

The DA will likely also charge Gardner with possession of child pornography if the photos are still on Gardner’s phone. During the search warrant, Detectives discovered a Samsung Cell phone with popsocket, a Samsung tablet, a KUSD MacBook PRO, and an HP all-in-one PC. The boy did tell detectives that he believed Gardner kept the child pornpography on his cellphone.

Paid Advertisement

Gardner, who is openly gay, has sent school-wide emails calling himself “a gay.”

Paid Advertisement

Gardner is expected to be formally charged tomorrow at 1:00 pm. Of course, KCE will be there to update you. This is a breaking story.

Author

Copied!
LATEST NEWS

Kenosha CNA Accused of Assaulting Elderly Resident at Care Facility

Kenosha, Wis. — A Kenosha woman stands accused of abusing a 73-year-old man at a local care facility where she worked, according to a criminal complaint filed in Kenosha County Circuit Court. Jahnix A. Medina, 27, was charged with one count of physical abuse of an elder person, intentionally causing bodily harm, a Class H felony. If convicted, she faces up to six years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both. According to the complaint, officers

Read More »

Maine Man Accused of Violent Robbery in Kenosha; Bail Set at $10,000

Kenosha, Wis. — A Maine man is facing felony charges in Kenosha County after allegedly assaulting a woman and robbing her of a necklace in a violent altercation last fall. On Wednesday, Court Commissioner William Michel II set bail at $10,000 cash for Lewis A. Covington, 32, who is charged with robbery with use of force and substantial battery—both with domestic abuse enhancers. According to the criminal complaint, the incident occurred on October 12, 2024, when

Read More »
MORE TOP STORIES

Village Administrator Lawyers Up Amid DNR Wetland Investigation

Salem Lakes, Wis. — The Village of Salem Lakes’ top administrator is under scrutiny after the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) launched an investigation into potential illegal wetland disturbances on municipal property. The property in question is zoned C1. Lowland Resource Conservancy (C1) zoning is intended to prevent the destruction of valuable natural resources, including wetlands, shorelands, and areas subject to flooding. This is among the most restrictive zoning in the County. Cassandra Hiller, the

Read More »

Kenosha Alderman Accused of “Playing Cop” Again, Raising Concerns Over Overreach: Video

Kenosha, Wis. – Alderman Rollin Pizzala is facing renewed scrutiny after being spotted once again engaging in actions that appear to be outside the scope of his duties as a city legislator. On Thursday afternoon, a tip-off to Kenosha County Eye (KCE) reported Pizzala actively patrolling the 43rd Avenue neighborhood north of 60th Street, raising concerns among residents about his actions. Pizzala was reportedly “inspecting” properties in the area for code violations, such as property maintenance,

Read More »

Racine Officer Shoots Armed Suspect During Home Invasion: Investigation Underway

Racine, Wis. — An officer with the Racine Police Department shot and injured a suspect during a tense encounter inside a residence Tuesday night following a reported armed home invasion. The incident occurred in the 1100 block of Hamilton Street and has triggered an outside investigation, officials confirmed. According to a news release from the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office, Racine officers responded to the scene on April 22 after receiving reports of a home invasion involving

Read More »

Kenosha Man Accused of Strangling Girlfriend, Causing Severe Facial Injury

Kenosha, Wis. — A 56-year-old Kenosha man is facing multiple criminal charges after allegedly assaulting his live-in girlfriend, choking her and striking her in the face hard enough to require stitches and cause temporary vision loss. Allen S. Meyer was charged in Kenosha County Circuit Court with substantial battery, strangulation and suffocation, and disorderly conduct — all with domestic abuse enhancers. The alleged attack occurred on March 21 at Meyer’s upper unit residence on 17th Avenue.

Read More »

Kenosha Woman Charged Again for Stealing Family’s Car While Out on Bail for Doing the Same

Kenosha, Wis. – A 36-year-old Kenosha woman remains in the county jail on a $7,500 cash bail after being charged with stealing her daughter’s car over the weekend—despite already being out on bail for a similar car theft involving her own mother just months earlier. Kristy R. Delaney now faces a total of ten new charges in a case filed Monday, including five felony counts of bail jumping, misdemeanor bail jumping, misdemeanor theft, operating while revoked,

Read More »

Kenosha Woman Accused of Tearing Sister’s Ear in Violent Fight

Kenosha, Wis. — A 23-year-old Kenosha woman is facing felony charges after allegedly assaulting her sister during a domestic dispute, less than two years after a similar case against her was dropped by the previous district attorney’s office. Katie M. Imbrogno has been charged in Kenosha County Circuit Court with one count of Substantial Battery – Domestic Abuse, a Class I felony, and one count of Disorderly Conduct – Domestic Abuse, a Class B misdemeanor. If

Read More »

$50,000 Bail Set for Kenosha Man Accused of Distributing Child Pornography

Kenosha, Wis. — A Kenosha man is being held in the Kenosha County Jail on serious felony charges after investigators say he shared a graphic image involving a young child over social media. Daniel D. Pichardo-Vilchis, 39, was arrested April 16 following an investigation by the Kenosha Police Department and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). He appeared in court last week for an initial appearance, where Court Commissioner William Michel ordered a

Read More »

Kenosha Man Jailed After Additional Child Porn Charges Filed

Kenosha, Wis. — A Kenosha man is facing serious new criminal charges after being re-arrested last week in connection with a growing child pornography case. Hector A. Tot-Cuc, 25, was first charged on March 31, 2025, with two counts of possession of child pornography. He was released on $10,000 cash bail the following day. But on April 16, at 9:40 a.m., Tot-Cuc was taken back into custody after new evidence led prosecutors to file five additional

Read More »

Teen Avoids Adult Court After Bringing Loaded Gun to Indian Trail

Kenosha, Wis. — In a decision that’s raising eyebrows across the community, Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Chad Kerkman (D) on Friday rejected a request from prosecutors to waive 16-year-old Jaheem Wright into adult court, allowing the teen who brought a loaded gun to school and made threats to be sentenced in juvenile court instead. Wright, who terrified students and staff at Indian Trail High School in December, took a plea deal and pleaded guilty to

Read More »

Counselor on Leave Amid Allegations at Westosha Central High School; Parents Demand Transparency

Paddock Lake, Wis. — A counselor at Westosha Central High School is currently on leave, and parents are once again demanding transparency from school leadership. Kenosha County Eye has confirmed through multiple sources that the counselor is accused of inappropriate communication with a student. According to individuals familiar with the situation, the counselor allegedly used his or her personal cellphone to communicate with a student and is also believed to have given the student a ride

Read More »
Categories
Archives
Authors

95 Responses

    1. When you twist sexuality into something ugly and unnatural, which bears no offspring, you need to infect other people’s children with your poison to propagate it. People like this guy need to be made examples of…keep LGBTQ+PDFSNFRKS away from public school!

      31
      43
      1. It’s not fair to label all lgbtq+ as predators. This happens WAY more often with straight men and women. Homophobia isn’t the answer in times like this. You should never shame people for their sexuality only their actions and this is a disgusting action, but you should never resort to homophobia.

        11
        5
      1. both people are in the wrong, the kid is lucky he’s still a minor. If I were the boy, I’d leave this country, down right embarrassing

        1
        1
      2. I’ve had lessons with him before. It was during the summer of 6th/7th grade. He wasn’t bad of a teacher, except being strict at times. However, now seeing that he had a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy, I see him in a completely different way then what I saw at Bullen.

  1. Met on Grindr… The dating app that is featured in one of the “porn” books available in KUSD libraries. Awesome….

    26
    4
  2. Met on Grindr, a dating app featured in one of the “porn” books available to our kids in the KUSD libraries. Awesome…

    9
    2
  3. Disgusting! These schools are a mess. The pornography and the predators who put it there and capitalize on the damage it does need to be thrown out NOW. Why can these LGBT-obsessed people not keep their hands off of children’s minds and, in this latest of many cases, bodies?

    25
    16
    1. You’re right, it is disgusting and I blame the woke administration who supports, enables and normalizes this behavior.

      31
      7
      1. it sure does! The entire KUSD from the top down needs a complete housecleaning. At this point, it is advisable for parents to pull their kids from public school and either enroll them in parochial schools or homeschool them. We need to defund public education

        24
        12
        1. Not all parochial schools are good either. Just refer back to previous articles on this site. The church at St. Joe’s school had a pride flag behind Jesus.

          7
          5
          1. It’s not a pride flag for several years they have put that up it’s just a colorful flag they use during the
            Month of All Souls’ Day for dia de los muertos…this is what I hate rainbows are fun and little girls love them but you can’t have anything rainbow now without this correlation..annoying

            6
            3
        2. Let’s not forget about the priests who systematically raped thousands of children and were protected by an international criminal organization. Lock up all the real pedophiles like this guy and the church thugs instead of demonizing the schools.

          22
          5
            1. Seriously? Get your head out of the sand. The catholic church is the largest organized sex crime cartel to ever exist.

              13
              5
  4. This is so disgusting and egregious and is what happens when you allow perversion in the schools. “Let’s Talk about it” is one of the books pulled from the library system, which features how to get into the perverted sex app, Grindr. This guy is a predator and it sure seems like the Kenosha Schools collect the freaks who like to prey on children. These people need to undergo a much more thorough background check before being allowed near your most precious resource. Children are supposed to learn to be beneficial members of society while in school, not how to be groomed for sex acts.

    30
    6
    1. you can never have done it before or gotten caught for it.. so guess what a background check doesn’t do shit karen

      2
      1
  5. What’s going on with the predator from the YMCA that also worked for KUSD, what about the basketball coach predator? How many of these sickos does KUSD HAVE?

    13
  6. This seems to be happening alot at this school, Isn’t this like the 3 or 4th time that a teacher at this school has been involved with a current or former student ,
    maybe the entire school needs to be looked at …

    22
    0
    1. What makes you think that they are only at ITA? They are just the dumb ones getting caught. Don’t kid yourselves if you think that is the only school it is happening at. All of the schools are under the same woke KUSD administration.

      10
      2
  7. How is it that these perverts keep getting put at Indian Trail High School?? Is it because ITA is more diverse than any of our other High Schools??

    Seems a bit odd, that the majority of the teachers and/or staff that are being placed at ITA are all sickos!! How many arrests has it been for these perverted teachers that are preying on students??

    5
    7
    1. Maybe that’s where they send all the teachers who engage in this misconduct, kind of like the Catholic parishes moved their priests around.

      4
      2
  8. In Iran, this guy would e beheaded. They also condemn to death, people who write books critical of their religion.
    Many in our country apparentgly want to emulate Iran.

    1
    3
  9. This epidemic was beginning to take root in public schools 30 years ago.
    There’s NO SAVING THESE PLACES.
    People …….. make your mind up.

    4
    5
    1. It’s not just a one party pushing for all this stuff. Rhinos are all in on it too! Wake up! It’s WE THE PEOPLE, not We the “PARTY” group! Stand up, show up to meetings if you are able and make your voices heard!

  10. It’s time to remove all acceptance of support and leave it out of the classrooms. There were no issues back when all this wasn’t open and in the spotlight. Maybe it is time to revert back to the past and don’t openly talk about all this. Educate the kids with reading, actual science, math, history and writing. Leave all the social crap out of the curriculum. Also get into more tech and trade education. Then we will be getting more productive kids leaving high school. Not liberalized zombies who have no critical thought processing.

    13
    11
  11. Pedophiles are NOT only gay people. Can I remind you all of the Catholic priests and the Vatican that hid its pedo problem for WHO KNOWS HOW LONG!!! Stop with the gay hate. It’s PEOPLE OF ALL KINDS THAT CAN BE SICK. In my own personal experience I’ve seen straight white men be the face of this kind of crime. So shut the hell UP already with blaming the LGBT+ community!!!

    I say let’s castrate all the pedophiles and see if that helps with this problem. I’ve never been one for capitol punishment but this needs it.

    First offense- castration
    Second offense- genitalia removal
    Third offense- death penalty

    No adult has the right to take the innocence of a child and cause trauma.

    28
    1
    1. An article alerting the public to a predator is ridiculous? Talk about ignorant! You probably have a rainbow flag in your window if not child porn in your possession. They seem to go hand-in-hand!!

      8
      3
  12. Let’s NOT make this a hate column. And you know what, I am not gay but I sure give them the right to live their lives as they want. What this man did was wrong. His crime is picking a minor who lied – lied to join the website and lied to the teacher.

    3
    5
    1. Yes. Good idea, blame the minor. Maybe read the update to this article and learn this man knew full well that this kid was a minor. #TypicalLiberal

      4
      2
  13. I love how none of y’all are asking why a kid was on a dating website for adults and if the kid found out that he was a teacher at the school then he should have never meet up with him or done anything g with him if he even did that for all we know the kid might have done this to get him fired for some unknown reason but all you guys are thinks about is how the teacher messed up and n it the kid even thought he’s on a dating website underaged. I’ve meet the teacher and he’s a wonderful person and a good orchestra teacher I don’t think he did any of this and also people who make articles always make this worse then it really is to pull people in.

    3
    5
  14. I went to school with Nathan. He has done this more than once and got caught by a “YouTuber”. Sad thing is this could have and should have been avoided. How he got a job after being publicly made aware of is beyond me.. watch your kids close for creeps like this.

    1. He got caught at a Walmart maybe 5 years ago meeting up a child supposedly 16. Same accusations and had McDonald’s with him. I wish I could find it.. such a shame.

Add a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories
Archives
Authors

Subscribe to updates

Get notified of new articles. We'll never share your email address.