PORT ST. LUCIE — A school district employee faces a criminal charge after an investigation into a claim of child abuse on a bus that transports exceptional student education students for Northport K-8 School, police said on Friday.
The alleged incident occurred March 13 and involved school bus aide Abieser Pinillos, 43, of Port St. Lucie, who is accused of being physically aggressive with a 9-year-old girl, according to a Port St. Lucie Police press release issued Friday.
Police officials stated Pinillos was captured in video recordings that show him physically picking up the special-needs girl, forcefully pushing or shoving her into a corner and “aggressively shaking” her.
Police reported seeing “visible redness” on the girl’s neck and right arm attributed to Pinillos’ interactions with the student.
Pinillos, who was arrested March 20 on one count of cruelty towards a child without great bodily harm, was released from St. Lucie County Jail on $5,000 bond, police officials said.
It’s unclear from available court records whether Pinillos has an attorney representing him.
A redacted police report shows the girl’s mother on March 14 went to the school at 250 NW Floresta Drive to discuss the matter and spoke with Port St. Lucie police.
In video of the incident reviewed by police investigators, Pinillos is seen pushing the girl “down into her seat aggressively and pushing down on her multiple times” while the bus was stopped in a northeast Port St. Lucie neighborhood just after 4:30 p.m.
Another student on the bus recorded the incident, according to police.
One of the witnesses interviewed told police the incident was not the first encounter between the girl and Pinillos, but “it was worse compared to the times before.”
Detectives viewed video recorded by an camera installed on the bus in addition to video captured by another student on the bus.
When detectives interviewed Pinillos, they reported he said he told the girl to sit down but she continued, so he guided her while grabbing her by the shoulders and then “out of frustration,” he “shook the side of (her) bus chair.”
In a statement issued Friday, St. Lucie Public Schools officials acknowledged Pinillos’ arrest “due to child abuse allegations.”
“Upon being informed of these allegations, he was promptly removed from his role as a bus aide and assigned temporary duties away from students, with a recommendation for termination. In accordance with state law, the school district has notified the parents of the students he interacted with regarding the arrest and charges,” the statement continued. “The district is fully cooperating with and supporting the investigation being conducted by the Port St. Lucie Police Department.”
(This story was updated to reflect the correct spelling of the school bus aide’s first name as provided in court documents.)
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Corey Arwood is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Corey on Twitter @coreyarwood, or reach him by phone at 772-978-2246.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Port St. Lucie school bus aide faces child abuse charge for shoving student, police say
Reporting by Corey Arwood, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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