SAN ANTONIO – Parents and students at McCollum High School are stunned by the arrest of a teacher who is accused of assaulting a 16-year-old student.
San Antonio police officers said Tuesday that they took Edwardo Cantu, 46, into custody on campus.
An arrest affidavit offered disturbing details of the outcry made by the 16-year-old girl last month, including how she ultimately told police that Cantu had sexually assaulted her in his classroom.
“It’s disgusting,” said Audrilin Heredia, shaking her head. “(Cantu) kind of, gave off that energy ‘cause he was a little weird around the girls.”
Heredia was a student in Cantu’s Mariachi class. She is not the teen involved in the allegations against him.
“He would say certain things that were, kind of, odd...inappropriate for a teacher to say,” Heredia said.
Heredia was with her mother, Destiny Montez, when she spoke to KSAT 12 News outside the school on Wednesday morning.
In hindsight, they both said the allegations match up with what they saw as preferential treatment offered to female students.
Montez said she wonders if Cantu also may have had his sights set on her daughter.
“She never failed (Cantu’s class). She was always passing,” Montez said. “He gave her compliments.”
Maximus Saldana, a former McCollum student, said he fears for the safety of his sibling who still attends the school.
“It’s definitely not cool that stuff like that is happening here,” Saldana said. “I have a little sister who goes here. It’s just not an environment I want for her, obviously.”
According to the affidavit, other staff members told investigators that, even before Cantu’s arrest, they had made reports with the school about him being alone with female students behind closed doors.
Cantu apparently continued to teach at McCollum until the time of his arrest.
“(My daughter) had his class the same day, in the morning,” Montez said.
KSAT 12 News emailed the Harlandale Independent School District a list of questions, including what action had been taken in response to the earlier claims made against Cantu.
However, a spokesperson declined to answer any of them, saying a previously released statement was all that would be provided.
“A staff member at McCollum High School was taken into custody today (Tuesday) following an allegation reported to law enforcement. Harlandale ISD followed all required procedures as soon as the allegation was brought forward, including immediately notifying the appropriate law enforcement agencies and the required external entities. We will continue to cooperate with law enforcement as they conduct their investigation, and a District crisis team will be at McCollum High School tomorrow (Wednesday). Student safety guides every decision we make, and we take any concern involving a student seriously. Because this is an active investigation, the district cannot provide additional information at this time.”
Harlandale ISD spokesperson
Meanwhile, police said it is investigating whether Cantu may have targeted other students.
Officers are asking any potential victims to contact SAPD’s Special Victims Unit at (210)-207-2313.
This is the second time in recent months that a McCollum High School employee has been accused of sexually assaulting a student.
In April, KSAT 12 News spoke with a woman who said she was sexually assaulted by a now-former basketball coach at the school during the time when she was a student there.
Marcus Alvarado, 41, has not been arrested, but he resigned from his job after the allegations came to light.
SAPD told KSAT on Wednesday the investigation into Alvarado’s case “was closed” and that no arrests have been made.
“I’m not surprised this has happened again because it’s happened before,” Saldana said in response to the Tuesday arrest. “It’s, kind of, becoming a theme here at McCollum.”
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