ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Two men, including an Orange County elementary school teacher, have been indicted on multiple charges of sexual abuse that investigators said happened at a Catholic school in Delaware in the 1990s.
According to the Delaware Department of Justice, Christopher Crisona, 57, was arrested on March 10 at Andover Elementary School in Orange county where he was working as a teacher. Deputies said they determined there was an outstanding warrant from Delaware for unlawful sexual contact for Crisona.
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Investigators said the abuse happened at the St. Thomas the Apostle School in Delaware between 1994 and 1996.
According to a news release, 80-year-old John Taggart, who was a priest at the school from 1987 until 1998, was identified after an anonymous report to the Diocese of Wilmington and the Wilmington Police Department regarding alleged sexual abuse.
Wilmington police said their investigation found evidence that Taggart repeatedly abused a victim during their 7th and 8th grade years at St. Thomas and the abuse continued after the victim left St. Thomas and began high school.
The investigation also uncovered allegations of abuse of the same victim by Crisona, who taught at St. Thomas the Apostle School from 1994 to 1995 and part of the 1995-1996 school year. According to the release, Crisona was removed mid-year following a student complaint and later worked at St. Matthew’s in Wilmington in 1999, Corpus Christi in 1999, and St. Hedwig’s 2000.
According to the Orange County school officials, Crisona was hired by Orange County Public Schools in August 2008 and he has been a teacher at Columbia Elementary, Sadler Elementary, Fern Creek Elementary, Stone Lakes Elementary, Avalon Middle, Wedgefield K-8 and Andover Elementary.
“While the district does not comment on employee matters, a teacher at Andover Elementary School was arrested due to a personal matter unrelated to the campus. The individual will not be returning to school while there is an open investigation,” the district said in a statement.
Crisona faces charges of unlawful sexual contact 2nd degree, three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse 1st degree, unlawful sexual penetration 3rd degree, unlawful sexual contact 2nd degree and continuous sexual abuse of a child.
“The State’s indictment alleges a pattern of gravely serious abuse against a juvenile by two adults in a position of trust,” said Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “As prosecutors, and as parents, these kinds of cases keep us up at night — but they also give us purpose. The victim in this case suffered profound trauma over a period of years and deserves justice.”
Crisone and Taggart are expected to be extradited to Deleware.
The DOJ is seeking other potential victims given the nature of the allegations and the defendants’ professional history. Anyone with information may contact (302) 577-5293 or ReportAbuse@delaware.gov to provide information to prosecutors and investigators