Attorney General Matt Platkin announced criminal charges on Oct. 29, 2024, against two senior correctional officers accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting an 18-year-old woman in their custody. (Dana DiFilippo | New Jersey Monitor)
Two senior correctional officers were criminally charged Tuesday for sexual assault after an 18-year-old woman incarcerated in a juvenile facility told authorities the men repeatedly sexually assaulted her in a bathroom, her room, and other spaces.
Gary Nieves, 53, of Burlington, and William Young, 35, of Marlton, were charged with sexual assault, criminal sexual contact, and official misconduct for alleged offenses that occurred at the Female Secure Care and Intake Facility in Bordentown, Attorney General Matt Platkin announced at an afternoon news conference at his Trenton office. The men face up to 10 years in prison on each sexual assault and official misconduct count.
“The conduct that we allege today has no place anywhere in New Jersey. Young people confined to juvenile facilities are extremely vulnerable. They deserve safety, care and respect,” Platkin said.
Platkin and J. Stephen Ferketic, director of the division of criminal justice in Platkin’s office, declined to detail when the alleged abuse started or how long it went on. Staffers at the Juvenile Justice Commission, which oversees the state’s juvenile lockups, were tipped to it on Aug. 14, and the victim subsequently confirmed it, according to Platkin’s office.
Ferketic said the men took steps to hide their actions, with Nieves using a mop “to serve as a prop” to assault the teen while she was on bathroom-cleaning duty. When he learned he was under investigation, Ferketic added, Nieves allegedly wrote a note to the victim telling her to tell investigators that he was like a father figure to her and gave her good advice. That earned him a witness tampering charge.
“The allegations in today’s complaint constitute a complete violation of the duties of these positions of trust,” Ferketic said.
Platkin urged anyone with information about this — or any other — abuse to report it to the state criminal justice division.
He also ordered the Juvenile Justice Commission to immediately report all criminal conduct allegations to Ferketic’s office.
That command was the latest in other changes Platkin has mandated in state law enforcement in recent weeks. Last month, he ordered sweeping changes in state police procedures after two reports documented deep-rooted racism and other problems there.
“We’re going to take a hard look at the circumstances that allowed for this type of conduct to occur and make sure that doesn’t happen again,” Platkin said Tuesday.
It’s unclear if the officers have attorneys yet. They are suspended without pay, a Platkin spokesman said.
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