🚨 Teachers in three districts were arrested on Thursday

🚨 One of the teachers is a politician — and his son was also busted


 

It was a week of shocking headlines involving teachers and community leaders.

In Bergen, Burlington and Hudson counties on Thursday, police arrested four men — who all work with children in schools — on charges of either sexually abusing children or downloading photos or videos of that kind of abuse.

In the most shocking arrest, officials in Bergen busted the City Council president in Tenafly along with his son on child porn charges.

Here is a look at the charges.

Students molested in Jersey City, officials say

A substitute teacher in Jersey City was charged with sex crimes involving two students.

Fayez Yassa, 64, was arrested on Oct. 12 at his Jersey City home.

Yassa is charged with two counts of second-degree sexual assault by contact and two counts of second-degree child endangerment.

Prosecutors say Yassa was terminated from his job.

New Jersey 101.5 did not know Sunday whether Yassa has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

Law enforcement authorities in Hudson County do not normally release photographs of defendants.

Vincent Root
Vincent Root (Burlington County Prosecutor's Office)
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Student exposes widespread molestation by special ed teacher, officials say

An elementary special education teacher in Woodland was accused of molesting seven boys at Chatsworth Elementary School.

Vincent Root, 58, of Philadelphia, was arrested Thursday on charges of sexual assault and child endangerment.

Investigators in Burlington County said the abuse occurred over the years.

The investigation began in September when one of the students came forward to tell his story about being touched by Root.

After the arrest, the district suspended Root and barred him from school grounds.

New Jersey 101.5 did not know Sunday whether Root had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

Jeffrey Grossman (via Facebook)
Jeffrey Grossman (via Facebook)
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Tenafly council president and son busted on child porn charges

The Democratic council president in Tenafly and his adult son were arrested Thursday on charges of possession of child pornography.

The mayor of the Bergen County municipality has called on Jeffrey D. Grossman, 65, to resign.

Both Grossman and his 24-year-old son, Steven Grossman, worked with school children in the Rochelle Park school district until they were removed from their positions following their arrests on charges of second-degree possession of child pornography.

Steven Grossman (via Facebook)
Steven Grossman (via Facebook)
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Jeffrey Grossman had been named “teacher of the year” in 2015 at the middle school, while his son was a substitute teacher in the district.

Investigators said they seized 32 electronic devices, including cell phones and computers and found evidence the men used the Internet to view and download more than a thousand files of child sexual abuse material.

New Jersey 101.5 did not know Sunday whether either man had an attorney who could speak on their behalf.

NJ teachers and educators caught in sex crime busts

Over the past several years, state lawmakers have taken on the challenge of dealing with accused child predators among the ranks of teachers and educators.

In 2018, the so-called “pass the trash” law went into effect, requiring stricter New Jersey school background checks related to child abuse and sexual misconduct.

The follow individuals were arrested over the past several years. Some have been convicted and sentenced to prison, while others have accepted plea deals for probation.

Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt