Gresham teacher charged with child sex crimes after online sting

Portland Police on Friday arrested a Gresham High School social studies teacher caught in an online sting designed to identify potential child abusers.

Oscar Armando Ramirez, who lives in Portland, is facing three felony counts of luring a minor and one count of online sexual corruption of a child, court records show.

Portland police

said in a news release

that a detective in Bothell, Washington was posing online as a 13-year-old girl when he connected with Ramirez in November. The detective, Mike Garcia, chatted with Ramirez for four days and the messages included “lewd sexual conversations,” Portland police said. Ramirez, who is 36, also made arrangements to meet with the girl when her parents weren’t home, police allege.

Garcia alerted Portland Police, who in turn alerted the Gresham-Barlow School District. The district put Ramirez on leave, police say.

The sting operation happened in November and the Portland Police Bureau was alerted in December. Officers didn’t arrest Ramirez until Friday, after a grand jury returned an indictment against Ramirez on the luring and sexual corruption charges.

Jail logs show that Ramirez was still in custody as of Sunday.

Portland police said their investigation has not turned up any evidence that Ramirez has been involved in additional crimes against students or other children.

The bureau has asked members of the public who have information about Ramirez to contact Detective Nathan Moore at nathan.moore@police.portlandoregon.gov and reference case number 24-805317.