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Fremont Teacher Accused Of Molesting Students 14 Years Ago Arrested In LA

FREMONT (CBS SF) -- A former Fremont teacher who fled the Bay Area for 14 years after allegations surfaced that he had molested two young students was found and arrested in Los Angeles on Wednesday morning, according to the FBI.

Frank Montenegro, 52, was arrested after FBI investigators tracked him to a community home in the Brooklyn Heights area of Los Angeles. He attempted to run from agents when he was located Wednesday morning but was taken into custody and is awaiting extradition to Alameda County, FBI officials said.

He was charged in 2001 with molesting two students, ages 10 and 11, multiple times during summer school sessions in his classroom while working as an elementary school teacher with the Fremont Unified School District.

Montenegro had worked for the district since 1988. He denied the allegations during an interview but fled the area once a $1 million warrant was issued for his arrest.

He was believed to have fled to Mexico after a Toyota Corolla he asked a friend to rent for him was found abandoned there. The FBI took over the investigation but he remained at large until Los Angeles police received a tip that he had been living there for several years.

Once he was located, he tried to run from FBI agents and struggled with them when they caught up with him, leaving some of the agents with superficial injuries, according to the FBI.

FBI officials said Alameda County prosecutors charged Montenegro with multiple counts of sodomy of a child under 14 against their will, oral copulation and continued sexual abuse of a minor. After he fled, he was charged in federal court with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, according to the FBI.

FBI officials expect the federal charges will be dropped and he will be prosecuted in Alameda County Superior Court.

© Copyright 2015 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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