by Temitope Oladeji
5/4/2025
A 44-year-old staff member at an Ohio high school has been charged with felony conspiracy after allegedly attempting to pay a juvenile student $2,000 to murder her husband, according to a criminal complaint filed by authorities.
Stephanie Demetrius, employed at the Academy for Urban Scholars in Columbus, allegedly approached a juvenile student on March 26 and solicited the teen to carry out the murder-for-hire plot, court documents reveal.
According to an affidavit, Demetrius offered the student a $250 “down payment,” which provided specific details about her husband’s whereabouts, including that he worked from home and the times he would be alone in the house.
In a recorded phone conversation obtained by police, Demetrius reportedly dismissed concerns about neighbors hearing gunfire, telling the student, “They don’t care about her neighbors.”
The plan was unraveled by the student’s mother, who discovered messages exchanged between Demetrius and the teen.
She promptly alerted law enforcement and brought the student to the authorities. Police confirmed that the juvenile, who remains unidentified, will not be facing any charges in connection with the case.
Demetrius was arrested without incident on Wednesday and arraigned in Franklin County Municipal Court the following day. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for April 11.
The Academy for Urban Scholars has not yet responded to media inquiries regarding the incident.