‘Monster’ music teacher accused of sexually abusing students at three San Jose schools

According to police, Israel Santiago harassed students in the music and music room at Adelante Dual Language Academy in San Jose. (SJPD photo/KRON4 photo)

(KRON) – A new lawsuit filed on behalf of students accuses the Alum Rock Union School District of harboring a “serial pedophile” in three San Jose schools, where he allegedly abused more than thirty female students.

Former music teacher Israel Santiago, 44, of Morgan Hill, was arrested by police in late 2022 on multiple counts of sexual assault of minors. The victims were younger than 12 and students at the Adelante Dual Language Academy, police said.

On Monday, attorneys said additional victims were found at William Sheppard Middle School and Ben Painter Elementary, where Santiago had worked before being transferred to Adelante.

Lawyer Morgan Stewart said: “Twelve victims of this monster have now come forward and I am sure there are more.”

The civil lawsuit, filed by the law firm Manly, Stewart & Finaldi in Santa Clara County District Court, alleges that the school district hired Santiago as a music teacher at the three schools despite knowing about his “sexually inappropriate behavior” in the classrooms.

The lawsuit calls Santiago a “serial pedophile.” The Alum Rock Union School District, Santiago, and several school officials are named as defendants.

Eleven students are plaintiffs in the lawsuit, and their attorneys are accusing ARUSD of negligence. The school district did not immediately respond to KRON4’s request for comment Monday.

According to the lawsuit, Santiago worked at two ARUSD schools, William Sheppard Middle School and Ben Painter Elementary, between 2012 and 2014. School district officials repeatedly warned the music teacher in 2012, 2013 and 2014 to stop touching his students, lawyers said.

After complaints of sexual conduct toward underage girls, ARUSD transferred Santiago to Adelante without informing parents, lawyers said.

“At ARUSD, Santiago was known for his sexually inappropriate behavior, which created a desire to find his way around and identify who was susceptible to his advances,” the lawsuit states. “At every step of Santiago’s tenure, the available evidence shows that he made a concerted effort to ‘pass the trash’ to cover up Santiago’s sexual abuse of minors and to transfer him to another school within the district.”

The district’s decision to allow the music teacher into classes with minors gave him the opportunity to continually and persistently sexually abuse and assault underage girls, the lawsuit says. Attorneys said district officials failed to report concerns involving Santiago to police and child welfare services.

Stewart said, “This case is a truly heinous example of how a California school district has enabled and covered up child sexual abuse. For years, ARUSD administrators ignored complaints about Santiago’s sexual misconduct with elementary and middle school students and transferred him from one school to another. The administrators who allowed this to happen and covered it up should be criminally investigated.”

San Jose Police officers arrested Santiago in November 2022 on suspicion of child abuse and sexual assault. Prison records show Santiago has been incarcerated at a correctional facility in Corcoran, California, since December 2023.

Eleven alleged victims, who are acting as plaintiffs in the case, suffered from shock, emotional distress, embarrassment, loss of self-esteem and joy in life, the lawsuit states.