Poudre School District employee charged with assaulting additional students after arrest
An employee with the Poudre School District who was arrested after allegedly hitting a kindergarten student is facing dozens more charges for allegedly assaulting more students.
The employee, Tyler Zanella, was a Poudre School District paraprofessional who rode the school buses. Officers viewed the surveillance video from the school bus which investigators said showed Zanella, 36, hitting a kindergarten victim before his initial arrest last month.
That victim in the initial case has disabilities. Investigators were able to determine the assault had happened on multiple occasions, April 25, May 19, and May 22 based on the video surveillance reviewed.
Zanella was arrested and faced several charges including third-degree assault on an at-risk juvenile, and child abuse.
After detectives reviewed hours of surveillance video from the bus routes that Zanella rode, multiple additional assaults were discovered. According to Fort Collins police, a total of six victims were discovered to be at-risk due to their disabilities.
The Larimer County District Attorney's Office has filed the additional charges: 30 counts of assault in the third-degree at-risk person, a Class 6 felony, 30 counts of child abuse, a Class 1 misdemeanor, 49 counts of harassment, a Class 1 misdemeanor, 19 counts of child abuse (different section than the previous charges), a Class 2 misdemeanor.
"This case highlights the strong collaboration Fort Collins Police has between its School Resource Unit and its Crimes Against Persons Unit, to help protect our children. The assistance and cooperation from the Poudre School District have helped to hold this suspect accountable," said Lieutenant Sara Lynd who oversees the Crimes Against Persons Detective Unit in a statement.
Anyone with information regarding Zanella is asked to call Detective Brandon Wootan at (970) 295-9208.
