Teacher Arrested for Lewd Acts on Student Has Subbed at "Most of Our Schools" in ABC Unified School District

Editor's Note: Click here to read the latest update on this ongoing investigation and court developments.

A 29-year-old Cerritos resident who was on allegations of lewd acts on a female student at Los Coyotes Middle School in La Mirada has worked as a substitute teacher at most of the schools within the , including Willow Elementary where he was filling in prior to his arrest, according to district officials. 

"Ted Nishihara has worked as a substitute in ABCUSD since 2009," Deputy Superintendent Dr. Mary Sieu told Patch. "Since then, he has substituted at most of our schools in the district."

Sieu said the district, which was informed of the allegations against Nishihara just yesterday, has been working with Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department detectives.

"His last assignment was at Willow Elementary School (in Lakewood) yesterday," Sieu said. "We released him from employment from the District as of today."

Alleged Inappropriate Contact Occurred Last Thursday

The investigation into the matter began last week when a student at Los Coyotes Middle School told school officials that " ... the substitute had looked at them inappropriately and it made them feel uncomfortable," a Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District official told Fox11 News.

The student claimed that Nishihara was looking at an area of her body, then later brushed up against her in an inappropriate manner, district officials told the station. He was released from his employment with the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District on Friday as a result of the allegations.

"We just act immediately, we don't wait for anything. We immediately stopped the access that the substitute teacher would have," a district official told Fox11 News.

The child's mother also notified deputies at the Norwalk Sheriff's Station that Nishihara had touched her daughter "in a sexual manner during class," prompting an investigation by detectives from the Sheriff's Special Victims Bureau, said Deputy Mark Pope.

Detectives interviewed students, staff members and others on the morning of March 12, then questioned Nishihara at his Cerritos home on Aclare Street, where he was arrested.

He was booked at the  about 3:30 p.m. Monday and bail has been set at $200,000.

Nishihara is scheduled to appear in Downey Municipal Court at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 14.

Investigators are looking for witnesses and additional victims. Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff's Special Victims Bureau at 1-877-710-5273.

Nishihara Has Been Working With Children Since 2008

According to his resume on LinkedIn, Nishihara graduated from Cal State Long Beach in 2006 with a bachelor of arts degree in Psychology. He then worked as an academic tutor for SCORE! Educational Centers between September 2008-June 2009, tutoring children from Kindergarten through 8th grade in various subjects. 

His resume states that he currently works as a substitute teacher for the Norwalk - La Mirada Unified School District, where he has been since October 2006. He is also listed as having worked as a teaching sub for the ABC Unified School District since April 2009.