Glendale teacher arrested for alleged sexual abuse of minor: PD

GLENDALE, Ariz. - Glendale officials say the city's police department has arrested a person for alleged sexual misconduct involving a minor.

According to a brief statement we received on the night of Jan. 18, the suspect, identified as Nathaniel Pineda, is accused of sexual abuse, sexual conduct with a minor, and luring a minor by offering or soliciting sexual conduct.

In their statement, Glendale officials identified Pineda as a teacher.

"Due to the sensitivity of this case, we will not confirm if the minor Mr. Pineda was involved with was a student or not," read a portion of the statement.

On Jan. 19, a day after Pineda's arrest was announced, we received a statement from officials with Dream City Christian School on the matter. The statement reads:

"Yesterday, a former employee of Dream City Christian School (DCCS), Nathaniel Pineda, was arrested by the Glendale Police Department for serious felony offenses involving misconduct with a minor.

DCCS first became aware of allegations concerning Mr. Pineda two weeks ago and immediately reported the information to law enforcement and removed Mr. Pineda from the school campus. Since that time, DCCS has been fully cooperating with the Glendale Police Department and honoring any requests the Department has made concerning its investigation.

DCCS would like to express its gratitude and appreciation for the diligence and professionalism displayed by the detectives at the Glendale Police Department during the course of its investigation.

The wellbeing of students is a top DCCS priority. Therefore, DCCS would request that the privacy of its students and families be respected, especially those who have been most affected by these events."