An Akins High School teacher who was arrested Monday evening for having an improper relationship with a 17-year old student declared he was supposed to marry the girl this week.

Ranulfo “Randy” Arias, 27, accompanied by the girl and her mother, tried to apply for a Travis County marriage license Thursday. In Texas, a person younger than 18 cannot obtain a marriage license without parental consent.

Arias is currently free on $5,000 bail after turning in to Travis County Jail officials Monday evening, but he could get up to 20 years in jail if convicted, being accused of having an inappropriate relationship between a student and a teacher.

It is not the first time that such accusations were made against Akins faculty members. An assistant band director from the same institution was charged with having a sexual relationship with a student last year. James Van Zandt, who was then 34 years old, was discovered to be having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old student. Zandt was not charged with crime, but surrendered his teaching license.

The school district placed Arias on administrative leave Friday, as the law does not allow employees at private or public schools engage in sexual relationships with students, regardless of the students’ age. Police does not believe there were other victims in the past.

The girl told the police that she developed a relationship with her teacher in March and they met several times at his apartment. She acknowledged she had sexual intercourse with Arias several times. Arias was a Spanish teacher who also coached cross country.

The girl’s mother could not be reached for comment yet.