Marta Elizeth Serrano Alvarado and Her Daughter Martha Jessenia Gutierrez Serrano Arrested After The 28-year-Old Enrolled At Hahnville High School Posing As Teenager

The St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office told local media that a 28-year-old woman enrolled at Hahnville High School and attended classes there in 2022-2023 while pretending to be a 17-year-old student.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, Martha Jessenia Gutierrez Serrano, and her 46-year-old mother, Marta Elizabeth Serrano Alvarado, were arrested and charged with one count of tampering with public records on Tuesday.

According to authorities, administrators with the St. Charles Parish School System received information that a female student thought to be 17 years old was actually in her mid-20s.

On May 29, the school district launched an internal investigation and contacted the Sheriff’s Office. The school year came to an end on May 25th.

According to the department, detectives determined that Marta Serrano registered and enrolled her daughter at the school using a forged passport and birth certificate. The Sheriff’s Office did not specify what name Martha Gutierrez used while attending the school. It’s unclear whether authorities suspect anything else unusual happened during Gutierrez’s illegal academic year.

The school district issued the following statement Tuesday evening:

“St. Charles Parish Public Schools notified the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office that fraudulent documents were used to enroll an over-aged female student at Hahnville High School during the 2022-2023 school year. The school system will enhance processes to determine the authenticity of enrollment documents for current and future students as well as modify policy and procedures as warranted. As this is an ongoing investigation conducted by the Sheriff’s Office, no further information or specifics may be shared at this time.”

If found guilty in the first degree, Martha Jessenia Gutierrez Serrano and Marta Elizabeth Serrano Alvarado could face up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine. If convicted in the second degree, they face up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine.