Hoover teacher faces serious charges for allegedly possessing child sex abuse material

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Caught online, a Hoover High School teacher and boys' interim soccer coach is now facing serious charges for allegedly possessing child sex abuse material.

38-year-old Miguel Lara of Fresno was arrested Thursday after a weeks-long investigation by the Central Valley's Internet Crimes Against Children task force, or ICAC-team .

"Once we began to work this case and send warrants to different social media applications, internet browsers, and things like that, it took some time to get the information back but once we got everything back, we found out he was a teacher, that is when everything started rolling. We were able to execute warrants and took him into custody," says ICAC Detective, Fernando Rosario.

The investigation began in June with a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Police arrested Lara at an apartment complex in Fresno.

His phone and other electronic devices were seized as evidence during his arrest.

"Any position that you are going to have access to children, especially in things like this its gonna escalate the situation for us, because there is a potential there could have been hands on offense, not that there is in this case, and we have not received any information that there was, this was strictly social media base," Detective Rosario explains.

In a statement, Fresno Unified School District said:

"Fresno Unified is aware of the recent arrest of Miguel Lara, who was serving as interim boys' soccer coach at Hoover High School at the time of the arrest. The allegations are deeply troubling. Our top priority is the safety and well-being of our students. We urge families to talk to their children and report any inappropriate activities or behaviors to a trusted adult at school. Anyone with information is urged to contact Detective Jovan Tamayo at (559) 761-3659."

Detectives are urging parents to have open communication with their children.

And their message to offenders is... "Sometimes it may be difficult to find them, they are ways they try to get around it and not get caught, but we have better ways and we are going to find them," says Detective Rosario.

Lara has posted bail and is scheduled to appear in court on August 7.

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