Dozens of Joliet parents packed into a District 86 school board meeting Wednesday night after learning that 23-year-old custodian Jeremy Ledesma had been arrested and charged with three counts of possessing child sex-abuse materials. Families said they only learned in recent days that Ledesma had actually been under investigation for months and had already been pulled from school duties. At the meeting, the board voted to terminate his employment and delivered a public apology to the community.
Parents in the room said they were “sickened” and wanted to know why they had been kept in the dark for so long, according to CBS Chicago. Several families said they fear their own children may appear in the material seized by investigators and pushed District 86 leaders for a detailed, start-to-finish timeline. Board President Jesse Smith, parents said, acknowledged that the district’s communication “did not meet the standards our community deserves.”
Investigators' timeline
The Will County Sheriff’s Office says the case started with a cyber tip about a Snapchat message in May 2025 that eventually led detectives to an address in September, according to reporting by Shaw Local. Investigators executed a search warrant at that residence in late September, and forensic reviews of the seized devices allegedly uncovered files they believe to be child sex-abuse material. The sheriff’s office notified District 86 in October, and the district says Ledesma was immediately removed from the schools and placed on leave.
Court filings reviewed by local outlets indicate investigators also found non-sexual videos showing children on the Eisenhower Academy playground, with audio of a man talking about getting a picture of a boy, details reported by Joliet Patch. Parents at the meeting were told those recordings are in police custody, not part of district records. District officials said they do not have access to the files and cannot confirm which children, if any, appear in the footage.
District response and background checks
District 86 leaders told families that Ledesma had worked for the district since 2022, covering late afternoon and evening shifts at Eisenhower Academy and Edna Keith School, and that he passed the required state and FBI background checks when he was hired. The board formally voted to fire him at a special meeting and issued an apology over how the situation was handled, according to Shaw Local. Parents said the explanation, including the district’s statement that it did not notify families about a 2024 misdemeanor battery case because it was not a felony, did little to calm their concerns.
Charges and court proceedings
Will County prosecutors have charged Ledesma with three counts of possessing child sex-abuse materials and allege the files date from Feb. 15 through Sept. 30, 2025, according to court documents cited by Patch. Detectives carried out an arrest warrant in early January, and Ledesma was taken into custody. He is scheduled to appear in Will County court Friday, Jan. 16, according to CBS Chicago. Prosecutors have asked a judge to keep him jailed while the case proceeds.
Parents say they still want straight answers about when the district first learned key details of the investigation and whether any students are depicted in the materials, while district officials maintain they are cooperating with law enforcement and have counselors available to support students and staff, per ABC7 Chicago. Community members at the meeting urged prosecutors to release more information so families can understand whether their children were affected. Administrators asked parents and guardians not to discuss the case directly with students and to route questions and concerns through district offices.
