MORGAN CITY — A former Morgan City High School teacher has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for attempted possession of child pornography.

Katherine Albarado, 32, was sentenced Sept. 9 by United States District Judge Robert R. Summerhays. She had previously pleaded guilty to the charge.

According to court documents, Albarado was employed as a teacher at Morgan City High School in May 2022. During that time, she used a personal email account to send sexually explicit messages to a student she knew was 16 years old.

The messages were aimed at getting the student to engage in illegal sexual contact and included a request for the student to send sexually explicit images of himself to her.

"Predators and especially people in positions of trust who abuse our children have nowhere to hide in this District," said U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Keller. "We urge parents to remain vigilant and aware of their children's digital and online communications."

The Morgan City Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren L. Nickel with assistance from Legal Assistant Christy Angelle.