Ten former Liberty Elementary School students allegedly sexually assaulted by former school technology aide Fernando Figueroa will receive a $13.7 million settlement from the Riverside Unified School District, attorneys for the victims said Tuesday, April 19.
The victims ranged in age from 7 to 11 at the time of the alleged abuse.
Police arrested Figueroa in February 2017 and he was indicted eight months later by a grand jury. As part of a plea agreement, Figueroa admitted that he “committed lewd and lascivious acts upon 11 different victims between 2014 and February 8, 2017,” attorneys said. On Dec. 13, 2019, he was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison.
Riverside Unified officials did not respond Wednesday to phone calls and emails seeking comment on the settlement.
Attorneys with the Irvine-based law firm of Manly, Stewart & Finaldi, who are representing the victims, said in a statement Wednesday that civil lawsuits filed against the Riverside Unified School District state that as early as the 2014-2015 school year, multiple employees became aware of complaints by one victim about Figueroa’s inappropriate touching. The child’s mother also contacted the school’s principal to complain, butthe complaint alleges that nothing was done.
“Testimony in the civil case has also revealed that Figueroa was often seen hugging children and found alone with children behind locked, closed doors in classrooms with the lights off,” the statement said. “Figueroa was still allowed unfettered access to children and the abuse continued for years.”
It is also alleged that Riverside Unified failed to conduct an adequate background check of Figueroa, who had been accused of sexual misconduct with a family member before the district hired him.
Saul Wolf, an attorney for the victims, said the inaction by Riverside Unified is a “textbook example” of a district that has failed in its obligations to protect students.
“It is abundantly clear that the corrupt culture at the highest levels of Riverside Unified School District and Liberty Elementary School allowed a serial predator to run amok at an elementary school and molest vulnerable children at will,” Wolf said. “It is my sincere hope that the amount of this settlement will force Riverside Unified School District to prioritize the protection of its students from sexual predators and grant a measure of justice and healing to the victims of Fernando Figueroa.”
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