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Police and school district officials confirmed Tuesday that a Bay Shore High School staff member is under investigation and was placed on administrative leave.
“The Suffolk County Police Department is investigating a report involving an employee of the Bay Shore School District,” police said in a statement. “Additional information will not be released during the ongoing investigation.”
The staff member, an art teacher according to a New York Post report that cited police sources, has been pulled from the classroom and barred from school property. The Post’s report alleges that the teacher sent sexually explicit text messages to an underage female student.
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“When made aware, the district took immediate action, placing the staff member on administrative leave and barring the individual from district property,” Superintendent Steven Maloney said. “The Suffolk County Police Department was immediately notified and we continue to fully cooperate with their ongoing investigation.”
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The new probe comes less than two weeks after Wading River School music teacher Mark Verity, 38, of Islip, was nabbed by police after a separate sting-related probe by a vigilante group.
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The Bay Shore investigation also follows previous arrests of other Bay Shore educators. In 2024, retired third-grade teacher Thomas Bernagozzi was at the center of a lawsuit that resulted in a $25 million judgment.
The district was ordered to pay the damages tied to Bernagozzi’s decades-old abuse case. He was accused of sexually abusing students for more than three decades while working at multiple elementary schools.
Bernagozzi, 75, was arrested and indicted on multiple felony charges related to sexual abuse and exploitation of children. The charges include first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child, first-degree sodomy, and possessing a sexual performance by a child, stemming from alleged sexual abuse of two former students and the possession of multiple images depicting another minor.
The retired educator faces significant prison time if convicted. He is due back in court next month, court records show.
In 2017, teacher’s assistant Marcus Johnson was arrested on sexual misconduct charges involving a student.
Maloney added in his statement that the district will continue to act responsibly regarding the well-being of students as the investigation continues.
Top photo: Bay Shore High School (Google Maps)
