It emerged that the educator had groomed the girl from the age of 11 to 13, giving her jewelry, money and extra learning support that she needed. The Teacher's Disciplinary Tribunal heard how the pair were seen holding hands with each other and that the girl would sometimes stay back after class to talk to the teacher. One of the girl's cousins recalled that "she saw their hands touching a few times and when she walked in there would be an awkward silence and they would look at her and shuffle apart," the tribunal said, according to the Daily Mail. The cousin told the tribunal that conversations she overheard between the pair were far from normal and that the teacher had also given her $5 and some earrings despite being only in Year Four herself at the time.