Disturbing accusations have been leveled against a middle school coach accused of carrying on an inappropriate relationship with a student in Balch Springs.
Balch Springs police say ‘disturbing’ surveillance video inside A.C. New Middle School in the Mesquite ISD shows just how far the inappropriate relationship went.
Sergio Gonzalez, 54, is in the Dallas County Jail on $60,000 bond charged with grooming a child and tampering with evidence.
Texas enacted a child grooming law in September 2023, targeting child predators.
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The Dallas County District Attorney’s Office can only confirm this is not the county’s first case of its kind.
The allegations stem from an internal investigation by the school officials in August where video from over the summer was then discovered and reported to police.
This article also includes expert insight and tips for parents when it comes to 'child grooming.'
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In this case, Mesquite ISD provided NBC 5 with a timeline to explain the actions taken by administrators.
On August 16, district social workers reported concerns about Gonzalez's relationship with a student, beyond the scope of his professional role, but concerns that did not include allegations of criminal behavior, according to the district’s spokeswoman.
The district placed Gonzalez on administrative leave four days later after finding ‘violations of district policy,’ which again did not involve any reports of criminal behavior, according to Mesquite ISD.
The school district told police Gonzalez agreed to speak and informed them he was simply ‘helping out’ the girl and her family.
The district reportedly contacted police and Child Protective Services (which is required) on August 22, because of conflicting statements and suspected criminal activity.
A review of security camera footage on August 23 revealed the alleged incident in July.
“The suspect and the victim walking down the hallway, inside the school during the summer, holding hands, touching her buttocks. They’re walking in with pillows, blankets and an air mattress,” said Officer Pedro Gonzalez of Balch Srings PD. “The video also shows the next day when they’re exiting the classroom they’re wearing different clothing.”
According to the affidavit, the girl told her parents she was spending the night at Gonzalez’s house but instead stayed with him at the school.
Officer Gonzalez says when a band teacher happened to be on campus and saw the two together, Gonzalez allegedly identified the victim as his daughter.
“’Oh, this is my daughter,’” said Officer Gonzalez. “So, there were no ‘red flags’ with the teachers.”
A young witness later told police Gonzalez would often provide transportation and that the victim had known the coach since she was a ‘water girl.’
According to the arrest affidavit, the teen had also spent the night at his house and ‘was with him almost every day including weekends.’
According to the affidavit, detectives discovered the two communicated over the phone and via social media apps, including messages where Gonzalez instructed the girl to delete their communications.
A call log showed conversations ranging from a few minutes to 3.5 hours, according to the affidavit.
A witness told police Gonzalez would buy the victim gifts and gave her a necklace belonging to his late mother.
The teen reportedly ‘felt comfortable with the suspect since she didn’t enjoy her home situation.’
When police interviewed the girl, she reportedly downplayed the situation, expressing deep concern over what would happen to him, according to the document.
“The victim has not been cooperating and so it makes it very difficult for the investigator to put the pieces together,” said Officer Gonzalez.
NBC 5 asked Alliance for Children of Tarrant County to provide general information and insight into ‘child grooming.’
“Usually, it starts with gaining the trust of the adults that are responsible for that child,” said Katia Gonzalez with Alliance for Children. “It's usually a person that is very charismatic, is very trustworthy, and then it's really gaining the trust of that child.”
It could be a relative, someone who is trusted, well respected and liked within the community, she said.
While the organization providing support for child abuse survivors is not associated with this case, Gonzalez says it is not unusual for victims to want to protect their abuser, who is often someone they know and trust like a family member or educator.
“It's an inappropriate relationship, but to that child, that's a person that loves them, that cares about them, that's spending a lot of time with them, that's paying attention to them,” she said.
Gonzalez says, generally speaking, child predators tend to gradually break down physical boundaries, isolating victims, and gaining trust.
“It could start out small, like playing tickle games or having a child sit in your lap,” she said. “It might be buying them gifts. It might be spending a lot of one-on-one time with them, especially if they don't have adults that are paying a lot of attention to them.”
Physical interactions between perpetrator and victim could come off as innocent fun to parents, she adds.
“It's very easy to dismiss as like, 'Oh, they're just being really touchy-feely or they're just being really caring about my child,'” said Gonzalez. “If we can really recognize those red flags and those boundary violations as they are, regardless of who that person is, then that can really prevent a lot of the sexual abuse that's occurring because a lot of times sexual abuse doesn't occur with people watching, but those grooming dynamics can be observed.”
According to the affidavit, police recovered a photograph inside Gonzalez's vehicle of Gonzalez's hand on the girl's thigh.
Witnesses also report seeing the two holding hands.
Children who are groomed and instilled with a sense of secrecy will sometimes refrain from reporting the abuse fearing they will get in trouble for accepting gifts or admitting to being alone with their abuser.
“Like, ‘we have a friendship, we have a relationship, nobody understands, we have to keep it a secret,’” said Gonzalez.
When asked if parents could consider it a ‘red flag’ if their child has communication over social media platforms, she said ‘yes.’
“Most organizations will have a policy against that to where educators or somebody that's in a position of authority with a child is not allowed to have any kind of social media interactions with them,” she said. “If sometimes there's interactions that are needed, will have like a public profile or like with sports if texting is necessary, there's a variety of apps that are available to where parents can watch.”
Gonzalez urges parents to seek out available resources.
“That way, they can get the justice that they need, but can also get into services to be able to heal from any trauma that might have happened,” she said.
While Balch Springs police do not believe there are more victims, they have seized Gonzalez’s electronics and will be conducting a deep dive into his ‘digital footprint.’
Police urge parents of A.C. New Middle School students to speak with their children about any contact they may have had with Gonzalez.
