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Former drama teacher sentenced to 90 days in jail for sexually assaulting student

Former Vista PEAK Preparatory teacher, Gabriel Alsina, took a plea deal in a case where he was accused of sexually assaulting a former student.

AURORA, Colo. — A former drama teacher at Vista PEAK Preparatory School has been sentenced to 90 days in jail for repeatedly sexually assaulting a student over a two-year period.

When he is released from jail, the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office said Gabriel Alsina, 37, will spend five years in a sex offender intensive supervised probation program. He also must surrender his teaching license, and register as a sex offender.

This sentence was announced by the DA’s office on Friday. Alsina pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sex assault on a child by one in a position of trust back in June, and all the other counts against him were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

Alsina was first arrested in August 2018, and initially charged with sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust and pattern of abuse. 

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The victim and her parents addressed the judge during Alsina’s Aug. 10 hearing, alleging that he “posed as a concerned teacher who wanted to help” when in reality “he played on her weakness, and he is a pedophile,” the girl’s mother is quoted as saying in a news release.

 “I was sexually abused by a teacher who wheedled his way into my heart,” the victim told the court. “His hands were constantly touching me in ways no adult should be touching a child. A teacher meant to protect me was the one hurting me.”

“I silenced myself for a predator … Now I want justice for the little girl he hurt.”

During the sentencing, the DA’s office said the judge praised the victim for coming forward.

“When you are dealing with a teacher and a student, there's a line, and that line cannot be crossed,” she told the defendant. “It was your job to draw that line in the sand.”

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