San Antonio police are looking for potential other victims after Edwardo Cantu’s Tuesday arrest.
SAN ANTONIO — A McCollum High School teacher was taken into custody Tuesday, accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old student on campus in November.
Edwardo Cantu, 46, faces a second-degree felony charge of sexual assault of a child.
According to San Antonio police, administrators at Harlandale ISD were made aware of an incident between a teacher and a student on Nov. 19. The school immediately notified SAPD’s Special Victim’s Unit, which conducted an investigation into Cantu.
The incident happened on Nov. 10, on school grounds and during regular school hours, authorities said. Once investigators gathered enough evidence, they were able to obtain a warrant for Cantu.
Investigators reviewed an interview of the victim in which she said she was alone in Cantu’s classroom when he kissed her, according to an arrest affidavit. He allegedly then locked the door and said “I shouldn’t be doing this” before assaulting the teen.
“There was a knock at the door and the defendant told the victim to ‘act normal,'” the affidavit states.
According to records, the teen “initially denied anything happened” with Cantu because she didn’t want to risk expulsion. But investigators reviewing surveillance footage from the school found she was in the classroom multiple times on Nov. 10 and observed her walking out about an hour after school ended.
A custodian at the school had also reported Cantu “for having female students in his classroom with the door closed,” records state.
He was taken into police custody on Tuesday while at the high school. HISD officials said the district “followed all required procedures” and was cooperating with law enforcement.
“Student safety guides every decision we make, and we take any concern involving a student seriously,” the district said in a statement. “Because this is an active investigation, the district cannot provide additional information at this time.”
Police said they believe there may be more victims and are urging others to come forward and call SAPD’s Special Victims Unit at 210-207-2313 if they believe they may be a victim or have any information related to this case.
Authorities said Cantu has no prior criminal history. The school website has him listed as the mariachi teacher.