Former CPS teacher gets 50 years in prison for sexually exploiting boy in Indiana
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A former Chicago Public Schools teacher was sentenced to 50 years in prison on Monday, after pleading guilty to federal sex crime charges involving a boy under age 13.
Pedro Ibarra, 48, of Elk Grove Village, pleaded guilty to charges accusing him of driving from Illinois to Hancock County, Indiana, where he picked up the boy and took him to a local hotel, where he "engaged in sexually explicit conduct with the child, which Ibarra recorded on his cell phone," according to federal prosecutors.
Ibarra was a CPS teacher at the time of the crime last June, and had taught elementary school students for more than three years, according to prosecutors. The charges were first filed in February in federal court in Indianapolis, and the Hancock County Sheriff's Department was able to arrest Ibarra within hours of when the victim filed a report.
"Communities place a tremendous amount of trust in teachers, and when someone in such a position commits crimes of sexual exploitation, it is a reminder of how vigilant we need to be in looking out for our children," Hancock County Detective David Wood said in a statement.
During an investigation of the case, Indiana State Police found sexually explicit images of the victim stored on Ibarra's cell phone, along with another boy who lived in Illinois, and was under age 15.
Within days of being charged, Ibarra filed a petition to enter a plea agreement.
He was sentenced at his change of plea hearing on Monday.
"The heinous sexual abuse of these children is every parent's nightmare. These tragic crimes reiterate that those who seek to sexually exploit our children online and in person are often the people parents and children should be able to trust," said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. "The significant sentence imposed today shows that federal, state, and local law enforcement will work together tirelessly to identify child sexual predators and send them to prison where they belong."
After Ibarra completes his sentence, he faces lifetime probation, and must register as a sex offender. He also must pay $30,000 to both of his victims.
