ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A former Pattonville middle school teacher appeared for a bond reduction hearing in St. Louis County Circuit Court on Thursday, just days after his arrest for child pornography charges.
People are taking to social media to share their experiences with Jonathan Striebel while he was a teacher for more than 15 years.
Alison Olwig said it was a difficult day in the courtroom.
“He saw me, and he recognized me, and I think he just went completely white, stone-faced. No emotion, no expression,” Alison Olwig, Jon Striebel’s cousin, said.
Olwig saw her estranged cousin for the first time in years while she stood side-by-side with women accusing him of inappropriate behavior while working as an educator.
“I will be here every date, every trial, I’m here to support victims, 100%. I know it’s very hard to come out and to come forward,” she said. “It’s going to be a long process, but we are all very united together.”
Olwig said 10 days ago, posts accusing Striebel of inappropriate behavior began filling her social media feed.
“In my gut, I knew this is all true. There were signs early on,” she said.
Olwig said just hours before Striebel’s arrest last week, she spoke with him on the phone.
“He knows what he did was wrong but also there is a disconnect where he’s trying to justify it as well: they’re no longer minors, they’re adults. But that doesn’t matter,” she said.
Court records show Striebel had a nude photo of a former student. Bridgeton detectives said Striebel kept the photo and sent it to the former student years later. The documents show the former student identified herself. She was 16 years old when the picture was taken. Police said Striebel admitted to knowing the student was underage when the picture was taken.
Striebel began teaching in the Pattonville School District in 2006. He resigned at the end of the 2022-2023 school year. Olwig believes this is just the tip of the iceberg.
“He didn’t maybe do something criminal by sending inappropriate messages to a 20-something-year-old, but overall, what he has done over the years is absolutely criminal and we hope that he stays in prison,” she said.
Bridgeton police said the investigation is ongoing and could not tell us how many alleged victims they’ve spoken with or if there are potentially more victims.
Striebel is currently being held on a $100,000 cash-only bond. He has a bond reduction hearing set for Oct. 10.
Superintendent Dr. Barry Nelson sent the following letter to families and staff on Wednesday:
Dear Pattonville families,
On Monday, we notified families that the district was made aware of a social media post referencing a Holman Middle School staff member who resigned in 2023. Today, we learned that this former employee, Jonathan Striebel, has been arrested and charged with possession of and promoting child pornography. The district is saddened to learn about this. Due to the nature of these charges, we want to assure our families that, during his time in Pattonville, the district never received any reports related to the type of behavior described in these charges.
Because this is an active police investigation, if you have any additional concerns related to this case, please contact the Bridgeton Police Department at 314-739-7557.
