Toms River teacher jailed, accused of taking sex photos in classroom
TOMS RIVER — A Toms River schoolteacher is in custody, accused of taking pornographic photographs of himself in his Toms River Intermediate North classroom and posting them to his public Twitter account, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said Tuesday.
Kyle Banner, 48, of Brick, a teacher at Toms River Intermediate North and Ocean County College, surrendered to authorities Tuesday following an investigation that began a month ago, when administrators at Toms River Intermediate North were alerted to an alleged pornographic photograph posted to his public Twitter account, Billhimer said in a news release.
Banner was suspended without pay from his teaching position the following day as an investigation was launched.
He is now charged with official misconduct and three counts of child endangerment.
The probe revealed that the pornographic photographs were taken in Banner's classroom at the Toms River intermediate school, Billhimer said in a news release.
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"To say that we are sickened, angry, upset and disappointed would be a huge understatement,'' Michael Citta, Toms River Regional Schools Superintendent, said in a prepared statement.
"The moment these allegations were brought to our attention on April 24, we immediately responded with a suspension and reported the allegations to the proper authorities,'' Citta said.
Ocean County College also took immediate action once it became aware of the allegations against Banner.
"Ocean County College was made aware that Mr. Banner was under investigation in April,'' Jan Kirsten, executive director of college relations, said in a prepared statement. "Mr. Banner was immediately removed form the classroom. The college has and will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement regarding this situation.''
The prosecutor said that to his knowledge, there were no students in the Toms River classroom when the pornographic photographs were taken.
However, the investigation by the prosecutor's Special Victim's Unit and High Tech Crime Unit, Toms River detectives and the Ocean County Sheriff's Crime Scene Investigation Unit determined that students viewed the photographs on Banner's Twitter profile and that Banner also sent inappropriate photographs of himself to a student on Snapchat, the prosecutor's news release said.
During the investigation, detectives recovered numerous images of Banner engaging in sexual conduct with himself in his classroom at Toms River Intermediate North, the news release said.
"I would encourage parents to have a conversation with their children if they had this defendant as a teacher,'' Billhimer said.
"School is a place where we send our loved ones to be safe and to prepare for a future of endless possibilities,'' Citta said in his statement. "It's therefore unconscionable that someone in our profession would put the welfare of our children at risk. The district will do everything in its power to ensure that our schools are never put in this situation again, and has likewise established supports for anyone affected by this intolerable behavior.''
Banner is in the Ocean County Jail, awaiting a hearing to determine if he will be held without bail pending trial.
His salary this school year is $87,095, according to the state Department of Education.
Anyone who has additional information about the case is urged to contact Toms River Detective Graham Borg at 732-349-0150 or prosecutor's Detective Stephanie Bayha at 732-929-2027, extension 3861.
Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Toms River NJ: Teacher charged with taking, posting sex photos
