A Hackensack man was arrested a week ago after allegedly luring a teenage girl into a school bus, officials said.
While luring might not sound like a serious sex crime charge, it is exactly that. The charge refers to the act of trying to entice a minor into criminal sexual activity -- and it can mean five to 10 years in prison upon conviction.
It can also mean that the person convicted must register as a sex offender.
Those daunting possibilities loom now in front of the Hackensack man, 50, after his arrest.
According to the Bergen County prosecutor, the man was driving a school bus for maintenance purposes around six in the evening when he stopped the bus and spoke to an unaccompanied girl in Bogota.
While talking with her, the allegedly hugged her and pulled her into the bus, where they continued to talk. She then left the bus a few minutes later.
The girl and her mother reported the incident that night to the Bogota
Police Department, which then contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor's
Office's Special Victims Unit.
The man was arrested the next day in Bogota and taken to the county jail.
His bail was set at $75,000 without a 10 percent option.
According to the media report we read, no witnesses have come forward
to corroborate the girl's account though the alleged incident happened
"on a heavily traveled road in a heavily traveled part of town,"
according to a police spokesperson.
The man has been placed on unpaid leave from his job.
Source: northjersey.com: "Hackensack man arrested for Bogota luring incident," March 22, 2012