Evanston School District 65 employees accused of sex crimes against minors

Employees of two schools in Evanston are accused of sex crimes against children that are not part of the school district.

Carlos Mendez is the assistant principal at Washington Elementary, and his girlfriend Maribel Flores Hernandez is a paraprofessional at Hill Early Childhood Center.

Both are now charged with criminal sexual assault of a family member under the age of 18 and aggravated criminal sexual abuse. Prosecutors say the couple repeatedly sexually assaulted a family member for more than two years.

The pair is also wanted on warrants out of Florida, where they are accused of abusing a different family member, also a minor. 

School District 65 responded to the charges in a statement, noting "the allegations do not involve any District 65 students."

District officials said Mendez and Hernandez are both on leave, Mendez since October of last year and Hernandez since Jan. 16.

"The safety and wellbeing of our community remains our highest priority. While these allegations are deeply concerning, this is a personnel matter and we are unable to share additional details at this time," the statement concluded.