Sex crime charges against Grand Island teacher head to district court

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) - New charges filed last month against a Grand Island teacher will be heard in Hall County District Court.

Philip Zlomke, 40, waived evidence hearings earlier this week on a total of seven felony charges against him, binding the cases over to district court.

The newest charges Zlomke faces are 1st degree sexual assault of a child, 1st degree sexual assault, one count of 3rd degree sexual assault on a child and two counts of incest.

Hall County Court Documents said the incidents are alleged to have happened between January 1, 2017 and February 28, 2021.

The court has sealed the arrest warrant affidavit which includes more detail about the charges against Zlomke.

These charges are in addition to the original counts of sexual assault against him from March.

Back in March, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office served an arrest warrant for Zlomke at Westridge Middle School.

Zlomke, a financial literacy teacher, is charged with two felony counts of first degree sexual assault regarding incidents that are said to have happened in October of 2021.

Hall County Chief Deputy Josh Berlie said those charges were not related to any students or anyone associated with Grand Island Public Schools.

Grand Island Public Schools Director of Communication Mitch Roush told Local4 that Zlomke’s administrative leave ended on the last day of the 2021-2022 school year. If proceedings are still pending in August, he will be placed on an indefinite leave of absence.

Zlomke is out on a $200,000 bond. A district court arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday, July 12 at 9 a.m.