AUSTIN, Texas — A pre-K teacher at Wayside Schools in Austin is now facing jail time in connection with child pornography.
Irving Perez, 33, was arrested Monday night. Perez is charged with a third-degree felony count of possession or promotion of child pornography, with the level of degree coming from the fact his victims were at or over the age of 14.
Wayside Schools released a statement Thursday afternoon upon learning of the investigation into Perez on Monday:
"On the afternoon of May 15, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) informed Wayside Leadership that Irving Perez, a Pre-K teacher at Wayside: REAL Learning Academy, was under investigation. While DPS would not provide any specifics as to the nature of the investigation, we were informed by DPS that the investigation did not involve any Wayside scholars or anyone else associated with the school, and that there was not a threat toward any of our scholars. We pressed DPS for more details, as Mr. Perez was on duty and actively working. As more details could not be provided, Wayside Leadership made the decision to immediately escort the staff member off campus and to place him on administrative leave as our primary interest is always the safety of our scholars.
Late evening on May 16, DPS informed Wayside Leadership they had made an offsite arrest of Mr. Perez related to possession of child pornography. Mr. Perez is charged with a third-degree felony, which relates to victims ages 14 and older. As the criminal investigation did not originate at or directly involve Wayside Schools, we have no further information at this time. However, Wayside wants our community to know that we will have additional counseling support available at Wayside: REAL Learning Academy for the next two weeks if there are any scholars, parents or staff who need to talk.
While we have no reason to believe any scholars were in any danger, if you know someone that may have been harmed, please contact DPS Special Agent Stephen Haehnel at 512-997-4100 and let him know you are a Wayside family. We will continue to work with DPS to the extent they require our assistance. Please know that we take every safety situation very seriously."
As mentioned in the statement, Wayside Schools said they don't believe any students were involved or are in any danger.
This is a developing story. Check back with KVUE for more information.