Mounds View teacher charged with sex crimes against student; police believe there may be other victims

Mound View teacher charged

A teacher at Mounds View High School is accused of sexually assaulting a student.

Ted Matthew Bennett, 58, faces one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. A spokesperson for the school district shared that Bennett had been placed on administrative leave on Monday.

RELATED: Mounds View High School teacher arrested for alleged inappropriate contact with underage student

Police responded to the high school on Monday and determined that Bennett had sexually assaulted a 16-year-old student and provided her with alcohol and drugs, according to the criminal complaint.

The victim’s father allowed investigators to search her phone, which uncovered evidence of Bennett’s misconduct.

The victim texted Bennett and said that a friend told her to go on Adderall after she said that she wanted to kill herself, and asked Bennett for some pills. Bennet reportedly replied, “Maybe…Add on some more illegal behaviors to the list.”

The victim told police that one of the assaults took place during the “6th hour” of the school day, in the back room of the theater, after Bennett pointed out that there weren’t cameras there, according to court documents.

On Monday, when Bennett was placed on administrative leave, he texted the victim to “lie to them and delete everything.” Surveillance video inside the school showed the victim crying on the phone with someone and dropping to her knees.

The school’s principal told police that he received reports that the victim’s friend and boyfriend had reported concerns to school staff about Bennett’s relationship with the victim.

School officials found surveillance video of Bennett and the victim walking together in school hallways and going into a storage closet together. Bennett and the victim were also in contact using their school emails before Bennett switched to using his personal email. He still contacted the victim through her school email address.

Authorities believe that Bennett had other victims and are planning to open a tip line for others to come forward.
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