SAN LEANDRO — The husband of a school board trustee here was arrested in September, months after losing his substitute teaching job over allegations he was “grooming” 7th grade girls in private Instagram messages, authorities have revealed.
The teacher, identified in court filings as Francisco Fegurgur, was arrested on suspicion of child coercion and subsequently released from jail, according to police records. He has not yet been charged with any crimes.
Fegurgur was not just a substitute teacher. He’s also an author and speaker who appeared on podcasts and radio interviews as a financial expert, preaching personal responsibility and inviting people to reach out to him with questions on his now-defunct Instagram account, @frankmoneytalk. It is the same account that authorities allege he used to reach out to 12- and 13-year-old girls at San Leandro’s John Muir Middle School, where he worked as a substitute teacher until March.
Officials at the San Leandro Unified School District say that when the allegations surfaced, they “immediately” terminated Fegurgur’s contract, and that he has been banned from ever working at the school again. His statewide teaching credential remains active, according to public records.
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Francisco Fegurgur’s wife, Melissa Fegurgur, was appointed to the SLUSD school board in August 2023, and declined to run for re-election this fall. The couple did not respond to separate requests for comment. Police raided the Fegurgur residence in San Leandro in August, seizing multiple electronic devices, including several computers and memory cards, according to court records.
The problems for Francisco Fegurgur started in March, when police say a girl took matters into her own hands after hearing rumors that he was inappropriately chatting with her classmates. The student created a fake Instagram account purporting to belong to a 14-year-old Castro Valley girl with the intent to expose Fegurgur. The two began chatting: Authorities say Fegurgur’s comments became so graphic that the girl was too upset to continue, and she decided to come forward.
After she spoke up, several more girls joined her, and police said in court filings that it appeared Fegurgur was “grooming” the 7th graders. Authorities say they obtained copies of the messages from the girls and confirmed Fegurgur’s Instagram account had sent them, sometimes using “vanish” mode to make the messages disappear after a time. The messages reportedly included remarks like “I’m going to kidnap you,” asking a girl if she was sexually aroused, and telling a girl that he wanted to “cuddle,” authorities said.
As a self-described expert in helping people prepare for retirement, Fegurgur appeared on money responsibility-themed podcasts, touting his story as a man born to teenage parents who overcame poverty to achieve financial independence. In some 2022-2023 interviews, he references being a published author on a financial literacy book geared toward elementary school students.
He also talks about teaching financial responsibility at local high schools in the Bay Area “all the time.”
School district officials issued a statement Monday saying that the district took “immediate action” when they learned in March that Fegurgur was being accused of contacting students in a lewd fashion. The statement says that Fegurgur was fired. When the John Muir principal questioned him about the allegations, he came to school, turned in his keys and left, police said.
“We will continue to cooperate with the authorities as needed and remain committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of our students,” the SLUSD statement says.
The police investigation remains open, authorities said.