Paloma Valley High teacher arrested on suspicion of rape

By Doug Spoon, Editor

An NJROTC teacher at Paloma Valley High School was arrested Saturday on suspicion of statutory rape of a student, authorities said.

Billy Singfield, 55, was booked into the Southwest Detention Center with bail set at $10,000, according to jail records. He was immediately placed on administrative leave by the Perris Union School District. Singfield has worked at the school since August 2019.

On Dec. 6, 2022, Menifee Police Department officers initially investigated the report that a Paloma Valley teacher was frequently texting a student during off school hours. At the time, there was no evidence to substantiate criminal behavior, according to an MPD news release.

When PUHSD administration on Friday advised one of the district’s school resource officers of a potentially inappropriate relationship between a student and teacher at Paloma Valley, it was discovered that it was the same student and teacher from the Dec. 6 call for service. The relationship this time “was described as boyfriend and girlfriend,” according to the news release.

In interviews conducted with the student, family members, and witnesses to the alleged relationship, it was determined that an intimate relationship existed between the two, dating back to 2022. MPD detectives served a search warrant on Singfield’s residence on Saturday and discovered additional evidence. Singfield was arrested at that time.

MPD detectives believe this is an isolated incident and there were no other children involved. If you have any information related to this incident, you are encouraged to call the Menifee Police Department Detective Bureau at 951-723-1540.

PUHSD issued a news release, which included the following statement:

“PUHSD takes all reported acts of misconduct seriously, and on March 3, 2023, immediately upon learning of these accusations, Mr. Singfield was placed on administrative leave. Legal constraints, including student privacy protections and confidential personnel matters, prevent further details of this case or the investigation from being disclosed.”