A 24-year-old Louisiana substitute teacher was arrested after she allegedly paid students to bully and assault a classmate that she believed snitched on her.

People reported that Aadrina Smith offered five students $5 each to tackle the female student. The incident occurred during a physical education class at North Caddo Elementary Middle School on Aug. 23. According to the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office spokesperson, Bia Roldan, the victim was attacked even though Smith failed to fulfill her end of the deal. “She offered to pay the students but ultimately did not,” Roldan said. “Only three of the students actually touched the victim.”

It is alleged that a video shows Smith speaking with the five students and that she “appeared to congratulate three who participated in the battery.” Roldan said the physical education teacher never helped the victim nor reported the incident to school officials. “This was out of retaliation,” Roldan expressed. “The suspect was upset and thought the student had told the vice principal that she had left work early the day before. Whether or not the student did or not, I don’t know. That’s what the motive was.”

Smith was arrested after the victim told her parents what happened to her, leading to the sheriff’s office becoming aware of the incident. “The student informed their parent, and the sheriff’s department was informed by the school district the day after the incident happened,” Roldan said.

As per the spokesperson, an incident like this shouldn’t occur, and the police department appreciates it when witnesses speak out. “Anything like this should not happen,” Roldan stated. “A good takeaway is if you see something, say something. We appreciate that the public is vigilant, and they speak up when they need to.”

The publication reports that the incident is still under investigation, and more arrests may be made.