A West Milford High School gym teacher was arrested Friday following a three-month investigation after he allegedly tried to bribe a 17-year-old girl into sending him a nude Snapchat video of herself, authorities said.
Christopher Shenise, 32, of Vernon, was charged with endangering the welfare of a child, official misconduct, and cruelty and neglect of a child. Shenise tried to bribe the student with a gift or money if she sent him the Snapchat video, according to a criminal complaint filed against Shenise and the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office.
Shenise was suspended with pay Nov. 20, 2018.
“The district is cooperating with the West Milford Police Department and Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office and cannot comment further on personnel matters,” West Milford Superintendent Alex Anemone said.
The investigation started with information police received from a faculty member and sent to the school’s administration.
Shenise also served as an assistant volleyball coach, according to district documents and a team Twitter account. He joined the district in 2014 and earned a salary of $53,920, records show.
He was held at Passaic County Jail pending a court hearing scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 9.
Anyone with additional information about the case is asked to contact Juvenile Detective Donald Fantasia at 973-728-2808 or d.fantasia@wmtpd.org.
Staff Writer David Zimmer contributed to this article.
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