The part-time English teacher accused of molesting her pupils at the Fray Juan Ruiz de Cabañas y Crespo pre-school in San Nicolás de Ibarra has been sentenced to a four-year prison term on three counts of aggravated sexual abuse.
Luis Carlos Vega, presiding judge at District V Criminal Court headquartered on the outskirts of Chapala, read out the sentence for Ana Guadalupe “N” at a hearing Wednesday, July 11. He also ordered payment for psychological damages inflicted on the three child victims involved in the case.
Two female minors are entitled to 13,000 pesos each to cover the 27 professional counseling sessions they underwent, while a male student will be compensated with 26,000 pesos for the 52 treatments he requires.
Giving a statement at the start of the hearing, the defendant proclaimed her innocence, stating that she agreed to accept guilt in exchange for a plea bargain deal to prevent further “victimization” of the youngsters who would otherwise have been required to testify in a full trial.
The legal arrangement also allowed the judge to impose the minimum sentence, rather than a full six-year term as established in the penal code. The convicted teacher and mother of three offspring has already been incarcerated for nearly 12 months, following her arrest on July 17 last year.
Once outside the courthouse her defense lawyer told reporters that once the sentence takes effect within a period of ten days, he will file for a suspended sentence and his client’s release on probation based on time served and good behavior.
The attorney representing the victims said Ana Guadalupe “N” may face further prosecution if additional criminal complaints are filed by the parents of eight other youngsters. He revealed that an arrest warrant has been issued for the kindergarten’s former director, who is believed to have fled the country.
Asked if they were satisfied with the sentence, mothers of the three children said that while justice had been served under the letter of the law, it would not undo the trauma suffered by their progeny.