🏐📱 COACH, WHY IS YOUR PHONE OUT?! Mundelein Coach Accused of Secretly Recording Student

📍MUNDELEIN, IL — A Mundelein teacher and girls junior varsity volleyball coach is facing a felony charge after police say a student realized something wasn't right while she was exercising and spoke up.

Police identified the coach as 48-year-old Dagoberto Diaz, a teacher at Carl Sandburg Middle School who also coached girls JV volleyball at Mundelein High School.

According to Mundelein police, the investigation began after an August 18 incident at the high school. A female student told officials that Diaz brought her into a room to perform stretching and jumping exercises.

While she was exercising, police say the student noticed Diaz holding his cellphone and saw the phone flash.

And THAT was enough for her antennas to go up.

Instead of ignoring that uncomfortable feeling, the student immediately reported what happened to school staff.

Good.

Because children should never be taught to dismiss that little voice saying, Something about this isn't right.

School administrators contacted police and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. Investigators seized Diaz's cellphone after obtaining legal authorization to search it.

Police say a forensic examination uncovered multiple images and videos that corroborated the student's suspicion that she was being photographed or recorded.

Diaz was arrested September 22 and charged with one count of unauthorized video recording of a juvenile, a Class 3 felony.

The school district says Diaz was placed on administrative leave the same day the original incident was reported and has not been allowed to interact with students or enter school property since then. District officials say they are pursuing termination of his employment.

Diaz appeared in court Wednesday and was released pending trial under conditions that reportedly include no contact with minors and staying away from schools, parks and daycares.

Now let me say this.

That student deserves credit.

She noticed something suspicious, trusted herself and said something immediately. And according to police, what investigators later discovered on the phone supported what she thought she saw.

THAT is exactly why we tell young people that adults don't automatically get a free pass just because they're teachers, coaches, relatives, neighbors or somebody everybody else trusts.

If something feels inappropriate,

SPEAK UP.

And adults, when a child tells you something made them uncomfortable, LISTEN before you start explaining it away.

Diaz has been charged, but a criminal charge is an accusation and the case still has to proceed through court.

Anyone with additional information about the investigation is being asked to contact Mundelein police.

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