Little Ferry NJ Priest Allegedly Pointed Gun at 8-Year-Old Boy, Faces Aggravated Assault Charges

A priest in Little Ferry NJ has been accused of pointing a gun at an eight-year-old boy.

The incident happened on September 13. According to Bergen County prosecutors, the 55-year-old suspect aimed the weapon, a Civil War era replica, at the young child while the child was inside a rectory room at a church. The suspect serves as a reverend at the church, St. Margaret of Cortona Church.

The suspect is believed to have asked the child to enter the rectory room prior to the alleged incident.

During a subsequent conversation between the two, the suspect alleged aimed the gun at the young boy.

A parishioner at the church learned of the scary incident and later wrote a letter to the Archdiocese of Newark. Sometime after receiving the letter, church officials contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.

The Little Ferry Police Department and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office investigated the allegations and later seized the gun. Authorities also seized ammunition and gunpowder.

The suspect was placed under arrest and charged with multiple criminal offenses, including endangering the welfare of a child and aggravated assault.

The suspect recently appeared in Bergen County Central Municipal Court in Hackensack, where the judge entered a plea of not guilty on the suspect’s behalf. The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office will now have to make a determination about whether to pursue an indictment against the suspect.

The suspect’s defense attorney has said the criminal charges are a result of a misunderstanding stemming from “good-natured fun” and a harmless football-related rivalry. At no point, said the defense lawyer, did the suspect point the weapon at the young child.

For more information about this case, view the NJ.com article entitled “Priest Accused of Pointing Gun at Boy Appears in Court, Report Says.”