A Texas teacher faces felony charges for allegedly performing oral sex on a sleeping student and filming the encounter on a cell phone after providing beer to the purported teenage victim, say Harris County officials.
Manuel Alejandro Gamboa, 35, was arrested last week following an investigation that traced back to June when the long-term Spring Independent School District substitute teacher stood accused of sexually assaulting a tipsy 17-year-old male student who spent the night at the teacher’s home on a sofa bed. The teen also alleged Gamboa filmed the sex act in multiple videos on a cell phone.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office charged Gamboa with one felony count each of sexual assault and having an improper relationship with a student. In police documents, the unidentified male minor, a Dukaney High School student, described Gamboa “like a mentor.” Prior to the incident, the teenager worked a side job to earn extra money cleaning pools with Gamboa. The teacher helped the teen with his homework since the 17-year-old did not understand English.
On June 3, the student went to clean pools when Gamboa offered him beer. “Complainant stated he consumed several beers and became dizzy due to him not normally drinking,” read the charging document. It noted the teen told police Gamboa did not want the victim’s family to see him drunk so the two returned to Gamboa’s Houston apartment where the teen recalled showering. He told detectives Gamboa loaned him a T-shirt, underwear, and shorts to wear. He said he did not feel very well and slept on the teacher’s living room sofa bed. The teen alleged he awoke the next morning finding Gamboa next to him. The charging document stated: “Complainant stated that as he woke up and began to get off the bed, the Defendant slapped him on his buttocks.” The teen told officers he “got scared and rushed to the bathroom” where he noticed “white dry semen on and around” his penis. In his police statement, the 17-year-old said he felt discomfort and some minor pain when he urinated.
After exiting the bathroom, the teen said he asked to borrow Gamboa’s cell phone to call his mother. While handling the phone, the alleged victim said he “noticed” 10 videos of “disgusting images” of Gamboa performing oral sex on him while he slept. The 17-year-old maintained he never consented to the sex act and had no recollection of it. He told police he “frantically” began to delete the videos.
The charging document stated the teen also called his father, told him what happened, and asked for advice on what to do. Later, the student underwent a sexual assault examination and the hospital confirmed the presence of DNA evidence not belonging to the victim. During the investigation, a Harris County police officer viewed text messages between the 17-year-old and Gamboa. In one, the teacher apologized for his actions and told him the videos no longer existed.
Spring ISD officials since released a statement, saying they were “extremely upset to learn that charges of this nature have been brought against a substitute teacher who worked in our district.” The school district said they removed Gamboa from their “substitute pool.” Officials also stated: “The criminal history and references of job applicants, including those who apply to serve as substitutes, are routinely checked before they are hired.” They called student safety their highest priority.
Gamboa is being held on $80,000 bail. He next appears in court on February 1.
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