(Michael Izquierdo / WTTW News)

A family is suing Chicago Public Schools, alleging a gym teacher at a Northwest Side elementary school groomed and sexually abused three young boys.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of three minor, unnamed victims, alleged that Federico Garcia Lorca Elementary School physical education teacher Andrew Castro was able to continuously abuse the boys despite prior complaints of similar abuse.

During a news conference Tuesday morning, attorneys representing the three victims — who are two brothers and their cousin — described the allegations as “deeply disturbing” and “repulsive.”

“This is not acceptable,” attorney Larry Disparti said. “We deserve better, and our children deserve better.”

According to the lawsuit, the grooming began during the 2017-18 school year, when Castro struck up conversations with the victims, watched them at their soccer practices and took them out to lunch afterwards.

Castro was also allegedly communicating with them electronically, and began driving them around to different activities like bowling, shopping or going to a movie, according to the lawsuit.

“Defendant Castro’s generosity, which was a part of his plan to groom the Minor Plaintiffs to be sexual abuse victims, secured the trust of the Minor Plaintiffs, and caused the parents of the Minor Plaintiffs to become more at ease with Castro’s constant presence in the Minor Plaintiffs’ lives,” the lawsuit complaint states.

In 2018, Castro allegedly began inviting the boys to his home, where they would go multiple times per week. It was here where he first began sexually abusing them, the complaint alleges.

The victims, who said they were embarrassed by that activity, didn’t come forward and tell anyone because they didn’t want to get Castro in trouble, the complaint states, and because Castro had hired some of the boys’ relatives to renovate his real estate projects.

According to the complaint, the victims continued visiting Castro’s home and were repeatedly abused throughout 2020 and 2021 — even after Castro was suspended from his school following an allegation of abuse made by a different boy.

The victims’ parents said they never cut off their children’s contact with Castro because no one from the elementary school “warned them that Castro had been suspended because of inappropriate sexual behavior and could be a sexual predator,” the complaint states.

Earlier this year, one of the victims began harming himself, and when confronted by his parents, told them about the alleged abuse, the complaint states. His parents contacted Chicago police, and learned that Castro allegedly had four prior complaints of sexual abuse.

Castro has since been arrested and charged with predatory criminal sexual assault and exploitation of a child. He remains held at the Cook County Jail.

A CPS spokesperson said the district does not comment on pending investigations or litigation, adding that CPS officials “follow district policies and procedures as we respond to issues.”

“Chicago Public Schools prioritizes the safety and well-being of our students,” the spokesperson said Tuesday. “We take seriously our responsibility to ensure all employees act in the best interest of our students.”

Cass Casper, another attorney representing the victims, said Tuesday that CPS must update its policies relating to sexual abuse and revise the education the district provides to parents about what the signs of grooming are.

“The children in this case need justice,” Casper said. “They need justice quickly, and we’re determined to get it for them and hold the Chicago Public Schools accountable.”

Contact Matt Masterson: @ByMattMasterson | [email protected] | (773) 509-5431