BOSTON — The former Boston public school teacher who messaged at least 20 underage girls on Discord, engaged in online masturbation sessions with minors while at school, and fantasized about having sex with one of his own students has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
John Magee Gavin, 35, of Brookline, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV. Ten years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. He has been in federal custody since his arrest in February 2025.
Gavin was a science teacher at the Josiah Quincy Upper School in Boston. Before that, he taught sixth grade at the Academy of the Pacific Rim Charter Public School in Hyde Park and worked as a paraprofessional with the Brookline Public Schools.
The Josiah Quincy Upper School in Boston, where Gavin worked as a science teacher. (Google Maps)
He pleaded guilty in December to coercion and enticement of a minor, receipt of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.
What investigators found
In January 2025, investigators identified Gavin as the owner of a Discord account used to message at least 20 underage girls between the ages of 12 and 17 located across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
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In those chats, Gavin told the girls he was a teacher. He engaged in sexual conversations, asked them to send him sexually explicit photos of themselves, and conducted online masturbation sessions with minors. Some of those conversations happened while he was at school, teaching children.
A forensic review of Gavin's iPhone, seized from his Brookline residence, turned up 147 files: 94 images and 53 videos depicting child sexual abuse material. The material depicted the rape of both female and male children, ranging in age from approximately five to 17 years old.
Five years old.
Photos of John Magee Gavin from social media. Gavin messaged at least 20 underage girls on Discord while working as a teacher at three Boston-area schools. (Social media)
The student he fantasized about
The Discord chats also revealed something else. In conversations with other users, Gavin discussed his sexual interest in specific students at the Josiah Quincy Upper School where he was employed as a teacher.
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In one conversation, according to court filings, Gavin expressed his sexual interest in a freshman student at his school and fantasized about having sex with her.
He was teaching her at the time.
The investigation
Gavin was first arrested by local authorities in February 2025 and charged in Brookline District Court with enticing a child under 16, possession of child pornography, and other offenses. The case was subsequently picked up by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts.
The investigation received assistance from the Brookline Police Department, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, and the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office.
U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley and FBI Special Agent in Charge Ted E. Docks announced the sentencing. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luke A. Goldworm prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, the federal initiative to combat child sexual exploitation.
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