Married Teacher Allegedly Sexually Abused 11-Year-Old Student, Sent Girl Sexual Photos, Messages

An 11-year-old elementary school student in Brooklyn, New York, was allegedly sexually abused by her teacher.

Daniel Santiago, 29, who taught at the Brooklyn Science and Engineering Academy in Flatbush, was charged with sex abuse and acting in a manner to injure a child under 17, after being arrested Monday. According to the police, the accused had engaged in abusive behavior toward the unidentified female victim since February, ABC7 reported.

Santiago, who is married and has a child of his own, had allegedly touched the 11-year-old student inappropriately on multiple occasions and even sent her sexual messages as well as pictures.

The first time he was accused of touching her was when both of them were riding on the school bus, on a class trip to an unspecified location. Sitting next to her on the trip, Santiago allegedly touched the student’s chest. Later, while coming back from the trip, he slipped his hands into her pants and touched her genitalia. The student also touched his genitals during the trip. Both the accused and the victim also had inappropriate physical contact on at least one more occasion, inside the school, according to prosecutors.

Santiago was arraigned Tuesday. Assistant District Attorney Wilfredo Cotto stated that the alleged incidents came to light when a social worker was made aware of rumors regarding an improper teacher-student relationship. “The complainant’s friends spread rumors about the school,” Cotto said in court, adding that the principal of the school contacted the police after learning about the rumors.

“The complainant was initially interviewed by police and did not disclose any information,” he said, until some of the messages and photos sent by Santiago were discovered by the 11-year-old’s cousin. The victim had also sent sexually explicit photos to the accused on at least one occasion, New York Daily News reported.

The girl eventually confessed the alleged affair she was having with Santiago to the police, leading to the latter’s arrest.

Santiago started working in city schools in 2016. Press secretary of New York City Department of Education, Will Mantel, issued the following statement regarding his arrest: “This teacher was immediately reassigned away from the classroom when we were made aware of this disturbing allegation. We'll seek to remove him from payroll as quickly as possible while the investigation is pending.”

The accused appeared in the court with his wife and child. According to defense attorney Michael Postiglione, his client had “a remarkable disciplinary record" and “was well respected by his peers.”

Santiago pleaded not guilty and acknowledged the seriousness of the charges against him. He was prohibited by a court order to ever contact the victim in the future. He was released after posting $75,000 bond.

Last week, a former New Jersey teacher admitted to sending explicit messages and nude photos to a 16-year-old high school junior, between February and April 2018. Michelina Aichele, 30, an ex-English teacher at Montgomery High School, was arrested in October after the school administration and the police discovered she had sent sexual photos and messages through text, email and social media to the victim.