New Jersey janitor accused of poisoning students is hit with new charges

Officials believe the man contaminating food products and utensils with bodily fluids

25-year-old Giovanni Impellizzari has been hit with child sex abuse image and child endangerment charges (Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office)

A former janitor at a New Jersey elementary school has been arrested after contaminating food products and utensils in the cafeteria with bleach, saliva, urine and feces that were allegedly offered to students and staff last month.

Giovanni Impellizzari, 25, was subsequently charged with aggravated assault, tampering with food products and endangering the welfare of a child. The acts allegedly occurred at Elizabeth Moore School in Bridgeton, NJ.

Authorities worked together to ensure food products in question were discarded and serving utensils and surfaces had been properly sanitized.

The man had been employed at the school since September 2019.

Now Mr Impellizzari has been charged with official misconduct and the distribution and possession of child sex abuse images, prosecutors announced in a press release on Thursday.

It’s not believed that the content was produced by the defendant. It’s suspected that Mr Impellizzari was in possession of the material and distributed it to others.

He was taken into custody and placed in the Cumberland County Jail ahead of a detention hearing.

On 30 October, New Jersey State Police officials were contacted by school authorities about social media posts made by the defendant in which he allegedly performed sexual acts with inanimate objects at the school. Some of those objects were recovered by officials.

It’s also suspected that Mr Impellizzari transferred body fluids to objects in another area of the school.

The Cumberland County Department of Public Health, alongside the state Department of Health, evaluated the defendant’s fluids to determine if there was a risk of infectious disease transmission to individuals who consumed food at the school.

Test results found that there were not any current health risks, though additional tests are pending.

Officials recommend that individuals contact their healthcare provider if they feel sick.

Still, it’s unlikely that recommendations change within the next week, officials said.

“The health and safety of the school community is a priority and additional information and recommendations will be provided as needed.”