Student Convicted Of Assaulting Fairfax High School Classmates

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — An 18-year-old student was convicted Thursday of nine counts of misdemeanor assault and battery on his classmates at Fairfax High School, according to court records.

Israel Flores Ortiz had been charged with 13 counts of assault and battery. He was found not guilty on three of the charges and another charge was dismissed, court records say. For the nine guilty verdicts, Flores Ortiz was ordered to pay a total of $1,778 in court costs.

Fairfax City police began investigating Flores Ortiz after they were alerted on March 5 about a series of sexual assaults involving juvenile students at the school that occurred over a period of months.

Originally, 12 people reported they had been assaulted by Flores Ortiz, who would approach them from behind and slip his hands between their legs, according to WJLA7.

After Flores Ortiz surrendered to authorities on March 7, he remained in the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center until his trial in Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on Thursday morning, according to court records.

RELATED: 12 Student Sexual Assault Victims Prompt FCPS Investigation

On March 23, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Michelle C. Reid sent a letter to Fairfax High School families, informing them the school district had hired a law firm to review the circumstances around the allegations.

"The goal is clear: to establish a clear understanding of what occurred, when it occurred, and confirm that all policies, procedures, and regulations were properly followed," Reid said. "The firm of McGuireWoods will conduct this thorough, objective, and independent review."

RELATED: Sexual Assault Charges Against Fairfax HS Student Draw School Board Response

In a March 30 letter Patch obtained through a Freedom of Information Act Request, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights notified Reid that it was initiating a Title IX investigation into the school district's response to the reports of assault made by the victims.

The investigation seeks to determine whether the school system had "discriminated on the basis of sex by failing to respond to multiple reports that a male student sexually assaulted female students."

"OCR will also examine whether the Division discriminates on the basis of race and/or national origin by permitting only students for whom English is a second language to access the Division's programs activities until they are 22 years of age," the letter said.

The investigation will also look at whether FCPS discriminated on the basis of sex, race, color, or national origin.

Flores Ortiz's case also caught the eye of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which claims that Flores Ortiz is in the country illegally. Patch has requested documentation of the suspect's immigration status from DHS.