28-year-old Louisiana woman accused of posing as 17-year-old high school student

BOUTTE, La (WGNO) — A 28-year-old Louisiana woman accused of enrolling as a student at a St. Charles Parish high school was arrested along with her mother.

Officials with the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office said deputies on Tuesday arrested Martha Jessenia Gutierrez-Serrano, 28, and her mother, Marta Elizeth Serrano-Alvarado, 46, both of Boutte, after receiving information about an adult woman possibly enrolled at Hanhville High School for the 2022-2023 school year.

According to SCPSO officials, the investigation began on May 29 after school administrators were alerted about a possible adult posing as a 17-year-old girl.

Martha Jessenia Gutierrez-Serrano's age was listed as 17 years old.

Authorities did not provide details about why she allegedly did so or whether authorities suspect anything inappropriate occurred during Gutierrez-Serrano’s time at the school.

Officials said detectives later learned Gutierrez-Serrano's mother had enrolled her using a fake passport and birth certificate. Arrest warrants were issued and the two were taken into custody.

They both face a charge of "injuring public records."

This is not the first time this year that an adult has been accused of posing as a U.S. high school student. In January, a 29-year-old woman was charged with using false documents to enroll in a New Jersey high school and attend classes over a four-day period. A judge in May allowed her to enter a pretrial intervention program.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.