Deming teacher charged for allegedly sexually abusing 14-year-old student

Prosecutors have filed a motion to keep a Deming middle school teacher behind bars after the man was arrested for allegedly sexually abusing one of his students.

Gerard Flores, 38, was charged with criminal sexual penetration (force or coercion), two counts of criminal sexual penetration (school employee) and two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor (school personnel).

Flores, who teaches the mariachi band program at Red Mountain Middle School, was arrested on Wednesday, according to court documents.

“The staff member has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of a formal investigation,” Jessica Etcheverry, spokesperson for Deming Public Schools, wrote in a statement.

“The district takes these matters very seriously and is fully cooperating with the appropriate authorities. As always, our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our students,” Etcheverry said.

Police were alerted to the teacher on Sunday after receiving a call that a 14-year-old girl wanted to report that she had an “intimate relationship with her mariachi teacher,” according to a criminal complaint filed in Deming Magistrate Court.

The teen told police she and Flores began a relationship last Februrary — when she was at the end of her eighth grade year — after she said she had approached Flores because she was lonely and felt that she did not have anyone to confide in.

Police said the teen told them she and Flores had gotten close during her after-school program, which is when Flores kissed her for the first time. The teen said the two would be intimate during her mariachi class or during her after-school program.

“Allegedly, the intimate relationship began with kissing on multiple occasions,” the complaint said. The teen told police that she and Flores had sex on multiple occasions, including one week prior to when she spoke with police.

The complaint stated Flores and the teen began to call and text on a daily basis, and at one point, Flores told the teen he loved her.

The two began to make plans for a mariachi band in El Paso, Texas, and Flores told the teen he had purchased a hotel room for their trip, the complaint said. Other items Flores purchased for the teen include earrings, a stuffed animal dog and a sex toy, which Flores gave her during school.

Police said the teen told them the relationship progressed until it became sexual.

“We talked about that we knew it was wrong, that it was selfish on his part, that he shouldn’t have done it, that he asked if I told anybody and I said no,” the teen told police.

In a pretrial motion filed on Wednesday, prosecutors said “children are among the most vulnerable members of society, and school environment(s) should be one of safety and learning. Such crimes shock the conscience and are among the most egregious of offenses.”