Jan. 10—BEMIDJI — A Bemidji woman has been charged after allegedly sending a student at Bemidji Middle School sexually explicit images and videos last year.
Thirty-year-old Bridget Lindell, of Bemidji, has been charged with a felony for engaging in electronic communication relating or describing sexual conduct with a child, along with a felony for distributing via electronic communication material that relates/describes sexual conduct to a child.
According to court documents, on Dec. 10, 2024, Bemidji School Resource Officer Ryan Riley was requested by school staff at Bemidji Middle School to speak to a 13-year-old student who shared with a school counselor that he received nude images of Lindell, who was working as a paraprofessional at the school at the time.
The student told Riley the images he received in August 2024 were over the messaging app Snapchat and consisted of “five videos and two images of Lindell’s face, breasts and private area,” the complaint said.
He told Riley the videos and images were deleted and he had then blocked Lindell’s account on the app. He also said that during the last school year, Lindell asked him for his Snapchat account and he provided it to her and they exchanged short messages, but he had no contact with Lindell outside of school.
He later went on to say he unblocked and blocked her several times after that and received what he guessed to be around eight to 10 images and videos of Lindell up until two months prior to December.
Upon further investigation, it was discovered that the student had shown the images and videos to a few classmates who confirmed what the student shared with investigators. The classmates also confirmed the pictures were of “Lindell unclothed and that she was touching herself and using toys on her private area,” the complaint said.
One classmate also stated that when Lindell worked at the school, she would talk about sexual activities she had engaged in with her husband.
Investigators received data related to Lindell’s Snapchat username given to them by the students on Jan. 3, which showed the explicit images and videos along with a number of text messages exchanged between Lindell and the student beginning in May 2024 and continuing throughout the summer, the documents said.
On Jan. 9, investigators went to Lindell’s residence to interview her. She shared that her employer, Teachers On Call, had advised her that there was an accusation of a photo that was shared.
During the interview, Lindell confirmed she was a part-time para with Northwestern Minnesota Juvenile Center most recently, at Bemidji Middle School last school year, and Bemidji High School, Solway Elementary School and Northern Elementary School previously.
Lindell admitted to talking to the student on Snapchat and let investigators look at her account, where they were able to verify the prior information. When asked why she sent the student explicit content, Lindell stated, “I guess just getting the attention,” the documents said.
Lindell also said that she “struggles with her husband and getting attention and (the student) was filling that void.”
At the end of the interview, Lindell was placed under arrest and transported to the Hubbard County Jail. She made her first court appearance on Friday, Jan. 10. Her next court date is set for 9 a.m. Jan. 21 at the Hubbard County Courthouse.
According to a release issued Jan. 10 from Bemidji Area Schools Superintendent Jeremy Olson, along with information in the court records, it was clarified that Lindell was not a school district employee but rather employed with Teachers Inc. as a contracted paraprofessional.
“Bemidji Area Schools blocked Ms. Lindell from all assignments with Bemidji Area Schools immediately upon notification that a complaint had been received and an investigation initiated by law enforcement,” Olson said in the release. “The district cooperated with law enforcement to ensure access to all relevant information during the course of their investigation.
“As always, the priority for Bemidji Area Schools is to provide a safe and welcoming environment for all students. All complaints/allegations regarding school district employees, volunteers, and substitutes are taken seriously.”