Henderson County Schools employee fired, charged with child sex offense
A Henderson County Public Schools employee was arrested June 19 and charged with statutory sex offense with a child and sex act with a student, according to a statement issued by the Henderson County Sheriff's Office.
Colby Saltz, 25, began his employment with Henderson County Public Schools in August 2024, most recently working as a teacher assistant at East Henderson High School, according to a news statement released June 19 by the school system. The school system
The Henderson County Sheriff's Office Special Investigations Unit initiated an investigation involving allegations of an inappropriate sexual relationship between Saltz and a student. the sheriff's office statement said. They immediately fired Salt, the statement said.
On June 19, Saltz was taken into custody without incident and is being held in the Henderson County Detention Center under no bond.
According to North Carolina General Statute 14-27.30 "A person commits the offense of statutory sex offense with a child if, the defendant engages in a sexual act with another person who is 15 years of age or younger and the defendant is at least 12 years old and at least six years older than the person."
Under North Carolina General Statute 14-27.32, "A person commits the offense of Sexual Activity with a Student if, the person is a teacher, school administrator, student teacher, school safety officer, or coach, at any age, or who is other school personnel, and who is at least four years older than the victim engages in vaginal intercourse or a sexual act with a victim who is a student, at any time during or after the time the defendant and victim were present together in the same school, but before the victim ceases to be a student."
This incident is part of an ongoing investigation, according to the sheriff's office and no other information will be released at this time.
"We encourage anyone with additional information regarding Colby Saltz to contact our office or use the "submit a tip" feature available on our mobile app," the statement read.
Henderson County Public Schools said in a June 19 news release that the administration was informed June 17 about an allegation of inappropriate conduct by a school employee involving a student.
"The district immediately cooperated with the Henderson County Sheriff's Office and provided assistance throughout the investigation. Later the same day, district officials were informed that the employee, Colby Saltz, would face criminal charges connected to the allegation. His employment with the district was terminated immediately," the statement said.
"The alleged conduct is deeply concerning, unacceptable and completely inconsistent with the standards, values, and expectations of Henderson County Public Schools. We remain committed to supporting law enforcement and will continue to cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation."
This story will be updated.
This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Henderson County Schools employee fired, charged with child sex offense
Reporting by Karen Chávez, Asheville Citizen Times / Hendersonville Times-News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published June 19, 2026 at 1:42 PM.