Aaron Chavez, a Catholic elementary school teacher accused of molesting five students since 2007, entered a not-guilty plea at his arraignment Monday morning in state District Court.
Chavez, 47, an art teacher at Santo Niño Regional Catholic School south of Santa Fe, was arrested in January after a 6-year-old girl told her parents he had insisted on tucking in her shirt during an art class and touched her genital area in the process.
Four other alleged victims — including an 8-year-old and two teenagers who were in Chavez’s class as first graders — have since come forward saying he also inappropriately touched them.
Chavez is on administrative leave while the charges are pending.
His bond was set at $50,000 cash or surety.