TUCSON NEWS NOW -
An assistant wrestling coach at Altar Valley Middle School has been arrested on charges of luring a minor for sexual exploitation. Ricard Moreno is accused of sending inappropriate text messages to a former student.
Investigators with the Pima County Sheriffs Department say Moreno crossed the line last week when he began sending the text messages to the 15-year-old girl.
"This is always very disappointing," says Altar Valley District Superintendent Dr. Nathan McCann. "We have a lot of faith in the adults that want to work with our kids."
He says the student told the head wrestling coach about the alleged communication and the district contacted authorities.
"As soon as we found out about this we immediately moved. This individual is no longer employed by the Altar Valley School District. Everything that we do is with the kids best interest at heart."
McCann says Moreno was hired just weeks ago and because he has children attending schools in the district, the district bypassed a background check.
"You know you send your kids to school thinking they're safe," says parent Misty Ratlaff. She works at the restaurant right across the street. Her step son attends Alter Valley and participated in the wrestling program.
"Well I know that he wouldn't put up with it and he would let us know, but I don't know," says Ratlaff. She says she's shocked something like this could have happened in the small tight-knit Three Points community.
"The schools pretty much tie everyone together. A lot of people are on the PTA, go to the town meetings."
In light of the recent arrest, McCann intends to change his policy on background checks.
"Make sure that all our coaches are vetted to a level well beyond what Arizona law requires by asking them to go through the same background procedure as any certified employee including administrators," says McCann.
Tucson News Now spoke to the alleged victim and her family, but they were unwilling to speak on-camera as the investigation is on-going. In the meantime Moreno sits in jail on $10,000 bond.
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