Springboro teen freed in drug case involving his teacher mother

The teen son of a long-time Springboro schoolteacher will be released today from juvenile detention while he and his mother await prosecution on drug and other charges.

The boy, 16, is accused of selling drugs to students at Springboro High School, including LSD allegedly purchased with Bitcoin, an on-line currency that his mother purchased for him with a credit or debit card.

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For the past two weeks, he was held on charges of drug trafficking, possession of LSD and possession of marijuana filed in Warren County Juvenile Court.

The mother, Springboro teacher Amy Panzeca, 48, is charged with permitting drug use in her home, endangering children and contributing to the unruliness of juveniles.

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On Monday, Magistrate Carolyn Duvelius released the boy, over objections from prosecutors, to the custody of his maternal grandmother.

According to police, the son said he used Bitcoin obtained through his mother to buy LSD on the internet.

“Amy was interviewed at the residence, and she admitted to buying” Bitcoin for her son, according to a search warrant affidavit.

“She denied any knowledge of LSD purchases. Amy stated that she believed the ‘bitcoins’ were being used for Adam’s gambling habit,” according to the affidavit filed by a police officer with the Warren County Drug Task Force.

Police also alleged text messages on the boy’s cellphone make Amy Panzeca “complicit with subjects using LSD and marijuana in her residence.”

The warrants indicate “criminal activity” began in April, but culminated in a raid on May 19 at the Panzeca residence on Chrisman Drive in Springboro.

A pretrial hearing hearing in the mother’s case in Warren County Common Pleas Court is scheduled for Thursday. She remained free on her own recognizance.

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The boy was charged on Aug. 14, the same day the mother was arrested on an indictment issued from common pleas court.

On Monday, Duvelius ordered the boy to undergo frequent, random drug tests and refrain from the use of electronic devices, except for schoolwork, after his release from detention.

The boy is also barred from contact with others allegedly involved in the case and limited to phone contact with his mother.

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“If any rule is violated, you will be arrested and you will be held in the juvenile detention center until this matter can be handled,” Duvelius told the boy during a hearing in juvenile court.

Assistant County Prosecutor Megan Davenport said the boy was a potential danger to himself, reporting a drug overdose on May 30.

But his lawyer, Kevin Hughes, said the boy had been a model prisoner while in detention over the past two weeks and needed access to his computer to continue his studies.

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