Catholic teacher charged with sex offences against student
Calgary’s Catholic school board did not suspend a teacher under investigation for inappropriate sexual contact with a student until he was charged about four months later, because police indicated he was not a threat to current students.
Education officials said they were first told in late January that police were investigating an allegation from a woman that she had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a teacher while she was a student at Bishop McNally High School between 2007 and 2009.
At a news conference Wednesday, the school district said the police service was “quite confident” that there was no current risk to students.
“Obviously, the safety of our students is our top priority, and it’s a difficult situation, of course, so we worked with the Calgary Police Service,” said Tania Van Brunt, director of communications for the Calgary Catholic School District.
“They felt there was no immediate risk to students in the building, due to the historical nature of the charges, so we co-operated with the police, with their investigation, and we deferred to their expertise.”
Since being advised of the pending charges this week, the teacher was told not to return to the classroom and the district has launched the process of suspending the instructor, said Van Brunt.
Staff Sgt. Dominic Mayhew of the Calgary police child-abuse unit said the victim was 16 years old when the alleged offences began.
“The incidents are alleged to have occurred at several residences in Calgary, as well as at the school,” he told reporters.
Despite the age of consent in 2007 being 14, police say the suspect “was in a position of trust and authority over the victim for the duration of the alleged offences.”
“The alleged acts are illegal and in contravention of Section 153 of the Criminal Code of Canada,” said Mayhew.
He said police are not aware of any other victims, but can’t exclude the possibility.
“I think that this is a circumstance where in a historic allegation 10 years later, there is always that possibility,” said Mayhew.
Based on the charges, investigators are interested in speaking to anybody who might have information.
Edwin Cay Arias, 45, of Calgary, was charged early Wednesday morning with sexual contact with a youth by a person in authority and sexual assault. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 20.
Arias is listed as a physical education teacher on the Bishop McNally website.
Van Brunt said Arias has been at Bishop McNally since 2005 and an employee of the district for 14 years. She said the school has no record of any issues with the teacher and that he was “very well liked.”
Arias will be suspended with pay until the case has gone through the courts, Van Brunt said.
She added the district’s critical incident response team and staff from its employee family assistance program are at the school to provide support to students, teachers and parents.
“As you can imagine, it’s a tough day for that school, and we have people on site … looking for students that are struggling with the news, looking for staff members that are struggling, because this is affecting everyone differently,” she said.
Van Brunt said the school board requires all staff members to go through a police background check before starting work with the district, and any staff member in a position of authority over students has to go through an annual review of appropriate boundaries and conflicts of interest. Students are also encouraged to reach out to a trusted adult if they feel they’re in an uncomfortable situation or if they have questions about behaviour.
Mayhew said police encourage victims to come forward when they feel comfortable doing so, regardless of when an offence may have occurred.
He noted there is no statute of limitations in relation to sexualassault investigations.
Jessica Campbell, director of communications with the Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre, said of the cases the centre sees, more than 80 per cent of victims are abused by someone who is in a position of trust, such as a parent, caregiver, parent-like figure, teacher, coach or working professional.
She added it’s not uncommon for people who have experienced child abuse to come forward at a later point in their lives.