Coach arrested for hiding coworkers sexual relationship with student

WINNSBORO – Our news partner KETK reports that a Winnsboro ISD coach was arrested on Monday after court documents revealed he attempted to hide the sexual relationship between another coach and a student.

According to the arrest affidavit from the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, on May 28 officers were alerted about an improper relationship between an educator and student that involved a Winnsboro High School coach during the 2024-2025 school season.

“During this separate case and its investigation, this WHS educator involved in this investigation has voluntarily confessed to the Felony 2 offense and its charge,” the document said. “This separate teacher/coach, identified as Coach Gabe, and has been subsequently charged and arrested.”

The affidavit said that these illegal sexual relationship began around the end of Oct. 2024 and continued throughout the school year. During this investigation, Coach Gabe’s cell phone was obtained and searched, which led to the arrest of Jared Lancaster who had a “very close friendship and on-going communication” with Coach Gabe.

“Communications between [Lancaster] and Coach Gabe began around the mid-summer of 2024 and continued until around the arrest of Coach Gabe (June 2025),” the affidavit explained. “While observing the on-going discussions between these two, multiple text discussions transpired regarding the two’s use of illegal narcotics and at times arranging drug deals and splitting the payments between the two.”

The document said other communications take place between the two coaches about sexual relations between other faculty, and various women related to WHS (parents of students).

“Coach Gabe and Coach Lancaster hung out together on a routine basis and both had open discussions on a regular basis and with both expressing a voluntary desire to help conceal, and assist one another in these aforementioned ongoing activities,” the affidavit said.

On May 22, the affidavit said, an anonymous person posted on Facebook under a page called “Winnsboro/Complaints or Not,” that said the following: ” I heard a teacher (coach) impregnated a student.”

Following a text chain, phone records show, that a phone call took place between Lancaster and Coach Gabe.

“Based off of the associated past history and type relationship between Coach Gabe and Coach Lancaster, and the mentioned communications between the two, it is apparent that Coach Lancaster not only concealed the knowledge of the sexual relations between Teacher/Coach Gabe and the WHS student, Coach Lancaster also attempted to forewarn and assist Teacher/Coach Gabe cover up his illegal relationship when it was mentioned on social media,” the documents said.

Lancaster was arrested for knowing to fail to make required child abuse report on Monday and was released the following day on a $10,000 bond. According to the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, this is an ongoing investigation and more arrests are expected.

“The safety and well-being of our students is our top priority,” Winnsboro ISD said. “Any WISD employee who fails to report violations as required by law will be held fully accountable under the law and will also be subject to disciplinary action by their WISD supervisor.”

In addition, the Winnsboro ISD school board considered firing Winnsboro ISD Police Chief Heath Guy on Monday after he was placed on administrative leave. Chief Guy was reportedly put on leave because he didn’t notify the district about a Texas Rangers investigation into Gabriele. Ultimately, the school board did not come to any decisions about Guy at Monday’s meeting.