NORTH PLAINFIELD, N.J. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — A New Jersey man was arrested and charged after being accused of sexually assaulting a seven-year-old boy in a church bathroom at the end of last month, which led to an investigation into a similar incident earlier this year, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Pierre Joseph, 68, was arrested on Sunday, June 23 by officers with the North Plainfield Police Department and charged with two counts of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of third-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
At about 4:40 p.m. on the day of Joseph’s arrest, police responded to a 911 call reporting a possible sexual assault of a minor at a local church that occurred earlier that day.
Officers were told that Joseph, of Plainfield, had been detained in the church until they arrived. He was then taken to the department for questioning.
The prosecutor’s office did not identify the church.
The seven-year-old was interviewed at the prosecutor’s office Child Advocacy Center by a detective with the Special Victims Unit, and he disclosed that a church member had followed him into the bathroom, pulled down his pants and his underwear and touched him.
Prosecutors said that the child initially reported the incident to another church member, who reported it to the church’s pastor.
The investigation found that a nine-year-old boy alleged that he had been the victim of a “similar incident” involving Joseph that happened in January or February.
That child was then interviewed at the Child Advocacy Center, and he disclosed to a detective that he was touched in his private area in the church bathroom.
Joseph is currently at the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing.
Anyone with information relating to the sexual assaults is asked to contact the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit at 908-231-7100 or the North Plainfield Police Department at 908-769-2900 or submit an anonymous report via the STOPit app.