Ex-Mounds View High School teacher indicted for grooming, coercing student

A former Mounds View High School teacher is facing federal charges for allegedly grooming a student for months by offering the victim drugs and alcohol, and coercing the student into sexual activity.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says that 58-year-old Ted Matthew Bennett was indicted by a grand jury on charges of persuading, inducing, enticing and coercing a minor to engage in sexual activity.

According to court documents, police began investigating after they were called to the high school on Nov. 10, 2025, on a report that a teacher was inappropriately involved with a student.

RELATED: Mounds View High School teacher arrested for alleged inappropriate contact with underage student 

Investigators say Bennett groomed the minor over several months through emails and texts.

Those messages later showed that he repeatedl...