Three Odem ISD coaches indicted, accused of failing to protect student during assault on school bus

Three Odem ISD coaches have been charged with abandoning and endangering a child, months after a student was sexually assaulted on a school bus returning from a game

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Three Odem-Edroy Independent School District coaches have been indicted in connection with a reported sexual assault of a student on a school bus, according to the San Patricio County District Attorney.

District Attorney Margie Silva confirmed to 3NEWS on Thursday that all three coaches have been charged with two counts of abandoning and endangering a child, a state jail felony.

According to the indictments, the coaches are accused of failing to protect a student from sexual abuse.

The coaches have been identified by court documents as Nathan Wuenschel, Cristian Torres, and Arnold Maldonado.

According to San Patricio County Sheriff Oscar Rivera, a juvenile student was assaulted in December 2025 while students were traveling back to Odem from a basketball game in Hebbronville.

The indictments follow a months-long investigation into the incident.

The alleged assailant, Christopher Jacob Soto, 19, was arrested in early January and charged with indecency with a child in connection with the assault, a second-degree felony. A magistrate set Soto’s bond at $75,000. He was bonded out by his attorney Frank Gonzales, according to Rivera.

In early January, Odem-Edroy ISD terminated one coach and placed the other two on paid administrative leave while conducting its own internal investigation.

In late January, the school board voted to terminate the other two coaches tied to the incident. The decision was not unanimous.

Superintendent Yolanda Carr previously said the district aimed to remain as transparent as possible during the investigation.