A New Jersey janitor who last week was accused of using bleach and bodily fluids to contaminate food at the school where he worked now faces child pornography charges, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
In addition to the charges relating to the alleged food contamination, Giovanni Impellizzeri, 25, is charged with possession and distribution of child pornography, the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Impellizzeri is accused of contaminating food and kitchen utensils in the Elizabeth Moore School cafeteria with saliva, urine and feces. He also sprayed bleach into a container of food that was later served to kids “with the intention of harming the students,” according to an affidavit of probable cause.
Investigators were able to determine that the alleged acts occurred from Oct. 26 to Oct. 30, the prosecutor’s office said.
Authorities at the school in Upper Deerfield Township contacted the New Jersey State Police on Oct. 30 to report a number of anonymous tips about obscene social media posts by the school’s janitor.
Impellizzeri was reportedly posting “extremely disturbing videos of himself while at work” on a Telegram group thread, according to the affidavit. Investigators reviewed posts from a social media account that appeared to show Impellizzeri “performing sexual acts with inanimate objects at the school,” officials said.
Impellizzeri, of Vineland, was arrested last week. He faces charges of aggravated assault, tampering with food products, endangering the welfare of a child, attempted misconduct and official misconduct, investigators said. He is being held in the Cumberland County Jail.
A call to the Cumberland County public defender’s office Wednesday night was not immediately returned.
Rebecca Cohen
Rebecca Cohen is a breaking news reporter for NBC News.