Teacher accused of assaulting toddlers says ‘emotions got the best of him,’ TX cops say

A preschool teacher is accused of assaulting three 2-year-old children in his care in attacks captured on surveillance footage, Texas authorities say.

Alfredo Xavier Marmolejo, a teacher at Excelled Montessori Preschool, was arrested Nov. 26 and charged with three counts of injury to a child, according to a Bexar County Sheriff’s Office news release. KENS reported the 29-year-old assaulted the children Nov. 14.

McClatchy News reached out to the San Antonio school Nov. 27 and is awaiting a response.

Authorities said one of the children was seen in the footage being grabbed by the teacher, who pointed a finger toward the child’s face. Marmolejo then dragged the child by the arm, picked the toddler up and “aggressively slammed the child onto a chair,” the sheriff’s office said.

Next, Marmolejo was seen slapping a child on the back of their head, leading to the toddler falling to the floor, authorities said.

He then walked into a 2-year-old, causing the child to fall and hit their head on a table, according to investigators.

“Marmolejo then yells at the child he dragged by the arm and slammed onto the chair from across the classroom without checking on any of the children he just assaulted,” according to the sheriff. “He is seen picking items up in the classroom and kicking several other items around for the remainder of the video.”

Interviewed by investigators, Marmolejo said he didn’t think what he did “was that bad,” the sheriff’s office said, adding that “his emotions got the best of him.”

Marmolejo was placed into the Bexar County Jail, authorities said. The sheriff’s office is asking anyone with additional information to contact them at 210-335-6000.