By Mary O’KEEFE

Glendale Unified School District (GUSD) continues its outreach to families of school-aged children with information on the ongoing investigation into former agency-contracted assistant Joseph Vladimir Sanchez. 

On March 12, GUSD released information that Sanchez had been assigned to Lincoln Elementary.

“I write today to share that an additional agency partner, Autism Learning Partners (ALP), confirmed on March 10 that it assigned Sanchez for one day as an assistant in a self-contained special education classroom at Lincoln Elementary on April 4, 2023. We are currently not aware of any reports of improper behavior by Sanchez while he was at Lincoln Elementary, and Glendale Police have not reported any additional, alleged victims since our last community update sent on Feb. 26,” wrote Superintendent Dr. Darneika Watson in a March 12 release. 

On Feb. 26 the district released information that Glendale police investigators had discovered a fourth victim in the ongoing criminal investigation of Sanchez. 

On Feb. 5, Glendale Police Dept. (GPD) released a statement concerning the arrest of Sanchez for alleged sexual abuse of an “8-year-old special needs student.” It also stated the alleged assault occurred on school grounds and the incident had been reported on Dec. 19, 2025; Sanchez was arrested on Dec. 20, 2025. 

Since then four victims of the alleged abuse have been discovered by GPD investigators. The investigation found similar alleged incidents spanning as far back as three years. 

On Feb. 3, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office filed eight counts against Sanchez – seven for alleged child sexual abuse and one count of allegedly being in possession of child pornography. 

Sanchez pled not guilty at his arraignment on Feb. 4. On Feb. 25, he appeared in LA County Superior Court before Judge Kerry White where he was granted a request for a preliminary hearing on April 22. 

Sanchez was employed by third party contractor Covelo.

“As of January 7, 2026, the District has implemented updated procedures that require all school administrators to verify the presence of all visitors, contractors and guests on any campus at any time through a digital check-in and ID scanning system. With these safeguards in place, the District can now quickly confirm campus assignments and visitor records across any campus when needed.

“Please note that any families with information that may assist the criminal investigation of Joseph Vladimir Sanchez are encouraged to reach out to the GPD Assaults Bureau at (818) 548-3106. In addition to the criminal investigation, the District has retained Epstein, Becker, & Green (EBG) to conduct an external administrative investigation into the alleged sexual abuse by Joseph Vladimir Sanchez on District school sites. If you have information regarding these allegations, please contact the specially trained investigators at EBG by emailing GUSDInvestigation@ebglaw.com.  Support services remain available to all members of our community through our Student Wellness Services Department. Additional support staff will be available at Lincoln Elementary following this update,” GUSD stated.