Catholic school music director sought sex with undercover cop posing as teen
A Catholic school teacher was busted after he sought sex with an undercover officer posing as a 14-year-old girl, saying he wanted to get intimate with her on a “desk in his classroom,” court documents reveal.
Lazaro Benito Rocha — the 26-year-old director of music at St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles Catholic Church in Corpus Christi, Texas — was arrested Thursday on suspicion of online solicitation of a minor and display of harmful material to a minor, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times.
Rocha replied on May 6 to an online ad posted by an undercover officer posing as a 14-year-old and knew potential consequences he faced, writing that “anyone 18 and older can get in trouble if they were to be found with someone your age,” according to the document.
The undercover cop stopped replying at that point, but Rocha contacted the officer the following day.
“I’m not complaining,” Rocha replied, according to the affidavit. “Are you?”
After asking for the teen’s cellphone number, Rocha then sent a photo of his genitals and asked the person he thought was an underage girl if she had lost her virginity before suggesting possible sex acts they could perform, the document states.
“During the messages, Rocha stated he was 26 years of age and a teacher,” the affidavit states. “Rocha stated he wanted to have sex with the 14-year-old on the desk in his classroom.”
A spokeswoman for the Diocese of Corpus Christi told the newspaper that Rocha, who worked part-time at the St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles Church, is no longer working for the diocese.
Rocha also will not return to Incarnate Word Academy in Corpus Christi, where he worked part-time as an elementary music teacher. He passed a required background check and drug testing prior to his employment, according to a statement by the school’s president.
Rocha, who posted bail Sunday, was at the school while he sent the sexually explicit messages and his vehicle did not leave the building during that time, according to the affidavit.
Photo Credit: Nueces County Jail