NEW ULM — A former Cathedral High School music instructor accused of smoking marijuana with some of his students, faces four charges in Brown County District Court.

Brady P. Waibel, 32, 806 N. State St. was charged Jan. 19 with felony 5th-degree drug possession-not small amount marijuana and three counts of gross misdemeanor contributing to the delinquency of a child. A Zoom hearing was set for 8:30 a.m. Feb. 14, 2023.

New Ulm Area Catholic Schools President Sister Julie Brand said Thursday Waibel is no longer employed at the school.

According to court documents, on Jan. 14 New Ulm Police Investigator Jeff Hohensee got a phone call from a supervising priest from the New Ulm Diocese who said he wanted to report an incident involving a Cathedral High School teacher, Waibel. The priest said he got a phone call from an administrator that three students had smoked marijuana with Waibel.

Hohensee contacted the school administrator who identified the students as three juveniles. Hohensee set up interviews with their parents at the New Ulm Police Department.

The second juvenile, a 17-year-old, said he and Waibel struck up a friendship. One day in November 2022, two of the juveniles and an adult student picked up Waibel and drove to the TH 15 south river bridge, parked underneath it and walked to a sandbar where Waibel produced some marijuana, smoked from it, then offered and passed it around to each student. All three students smoked the marijuana.

The second juvenile said between November 2022 and January 2023, the three students would go to Waibel’s residence to smoke marijuana and hang out. The first time they smoked marijuana was about two weeks after the river incident.

The second juvenile said Waibel would assemble a multi-colored water bong on his kitchen table, load it with marijuana and pass it around. All three students smoked from it.

The second juvenile said none of the students had to pay for the marijuana and Waibel provided it for free. Other occasions at the residence were similar.

Hohensee interviewed the other students who told the same story.

The third juvenile said they smoked or hit the bong between 10 and 20 times.

After police executed a search warrant, an agent of the Brown Lyon Redwood Renville Drug Task Force photographed and collected evidence that was logged in. Recovered items included raw marijuana, marijuana wax, a marijuana grinder and a multi-colored bong.

The marijuana wax tested positive for THC. The weight of it was estimated at 3/4 of a gram.

Waibel was arrested without incident. He later posted bail and was released from custody.