A Long Beach man who teaches at a Huntington Beach high school pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old boy.
Andrew Bueno Potts, 43, was charged Wednesday with one felony count each of sodomy by intoxication, sodomy of a person under 18, sexual penetration by foreign object and intoxication and sexual penetration by foreign object of a person under 18.
He is due back in court in Long Beach Nov. 2.
Potts was arrested Tuesday at his Long Beach home. Police said an investigation began in July when the 17-year-old alleged victim came forward. Long Beach police said detectives believe Potts sexually assaulted the teen on three occasions between July and December of last year, with one attempted sexual assault also occurring during that period.
The teen was never a student at Ocean View High School in Huntington Beach, where Potts teaches, police said.
“Potts met the victim when the victim attended a school function hosted by Ocean View High School,” according to Long Beach police. “The suspect befriended the victim, and eventually took the victim in to live with him.”
Police claim Potts plied the teen with alcohol and drugs.
He is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail. He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
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