A New Jersey teacher has been arrested and accused of sexually assaulting a 9-year-old girl in a school classroom, authorities said Thursday.
Paul Yang, a 32-year-old Leonia resident, was charged with sexual assault and second-degree child endangerment, the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office announced in a press release.
Yang is listed as a fourth grader teacher at Public School No. 25 in Paterson, according to the school’s website. District leaders did not confirm if he’d been placed on leave, but his first court appearance was held Thursday.
The investigation began on Oct. 22, when the 9-year-old victim reported the alleged assault to police, according to the prosecutor’s office. Cops determined Yang had assaulted the victim earlier that day inside his classroom at the school.
Further details were not released. Yang faces a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted on both charges.
Yang’s case is one of several in recent months involving New Jersey teachers accused of assaulting underage students. In September, 53-year-old William Arnold, a teacher at Pequannock High School, was hit with similar charges in Morris County after allegations of abuse.
In October, a former teacher in Bridgeton was convicted of sexually assaulting two boys when they were younger than 13 in 2004 and 2005. Isaias Garza, now 57, is scheduled to be sentenced in January. He faces up to 20 years behind bars.
