A former rugby player has been handed a two-year ban for teaching after telling a group of Year 8 pupils that he killed 250 people as a military sniper.
Scott John Trigg-Turner, 44, has been accused of making bogus claims to children that he had been a US marine sniper and still owned a gun.
He also allegedly claimed to be a Lord and the recipient of an MBE, the BBC reported.
Fellow learning support assistant Sharon Davies said she had become suspicious when hearing stories Trigg-Turner was telling pupils at Basseleg School in Newport, south Wales.
She said he told her he had served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles – even though he was too young to have done so.
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But Trigg-Turner, a prominent wheelchair rugby player for Wales and Wigan Warriors, has denied being unprofessional – and told investigators his words were ‘misinterpreted’.
An Education Workforce Council (EWC) Wales panel has heard that he boasted of killing ‘in excess of 250 people’ as part of his sniper claims.
Ms Davies said that Trigg-Turner personally said to her that he had served in the US Marines and then repeated this to the class in November 2023.
‘I can confirm he did state he was in the American military. He did state he still had his gun and it was in his house in Cardiff,’ she said.
Ms Davies added: ‘He said his code name was “Kill Switch” and mentioned he was a sniper.’
‘A child asked if he had shot anyone. Scott Trigg-Turner answered yes, he had shot someone.’
She said that when the class asked if that meant he was a murderer, he replied no and said it was military orders.
However, the hearing also heard that during a school investigation he denied having a gun in his house or saying that he did.
Trigg-Turner said that when he was talking about the military, he was referring to family members and that his comments to the class had been misinterpreted.
He was not at the hearing and did not have representation, nor has the rugby player made a formal response to the allegations.
On Trigg-Turner’s reply, an officer said: ‘He may not have got his words across properly, and his words were misinterpreted, he says.’
In an email to the hearing, Trigg-Turner said: ‘I have been diligent in my transparency in all interactions with pupils. I have never crossed professional boundaries and would never do so.’
He added: ‘I feel targeted and singled out. It is not fair.’
The EWC panel heard of wider attitude problems from Trigg-Turner too, including that he arrived late and left class early without agreement a number of times.
The hearing was told about allegations that he favoured female students in his Year 8 class, sitting closely to one when it was not necessary and telling another to change an exam answer.
The allegations took place while he worked on supply from January 2023, before being offered a job at school from September 2023.
It was also alleged that he gave inconsistent explanations to colleagues about how he came to be a wheelchair user.
Ms Davies said Trigg-Turner told her and pupils that he had become disabled aged 18 or 19 after a bicycle accident in Cardiff when he was hit by a bus.
The EWC panel has ruled that Trigg-Turner may not apply to be reinstated for the next two years.
He has the right of appeal to the High Court against the decision.
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