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Pasquale Bernaldo-Antonelli, 42, remained held in the Bergen County Jail, charged with child endangerment by possessing and/or viewing images of child pornography and/or abuse following his arrest the day before by detectives from Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella's office.
Cyber Crimes Unit investigators traced a child-porn complaint from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in January to Bernaldo-Antonelli, who teaches fifth grade at the K-5 Ralph S. Maugham Elementary School in Tenafly, the prosecutor said.
A search of his Garfield home revealed that he "used the Internet to view, download, or possess approximately 60 digital files depicting nude and/or sexually explicit prepubescent and pubescent children," Musella said.
Bernaldo-Antonelli -- also known as "Pash" -- began his 12th year teaching elementary students, the past seven at the Maugham School, records show.
The former Wayne and Teaneck resident also offers pet-sitting services at the Garfield home he shares with his partner.
Tenafly Schools Supt. Shauna DeMarco confirmed on Thursday that a teacher was arrested without identifying Bernaldo-Antonelli by name.
In a letter to the district, she wrote that a replacement would be announced within a few days.
“The administration will retain a replacement teacher and the administration will be meeting with the parents and/or guardians of the students affected by the replacement of their teacher over the next several days,” DeMarco added.
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