NJ law enforcement conducting a criminal investigation into a basketball scandal at Paterson Eastside High School in Paterson, New Jersey.
The Paterson NJ high school has been accused of violating immigration laws while recruiting international players to compete on the school s basketball teams, with school employees allegedly forging official documents. Moreover, the recruitment of these players may have constituted human trafficking.
The Division of Criminal Justice for the Office of the Attorney General launched the investigation after receiving numerous reports about illegal activity, including possible immigration violations. Additionally, it is believed that federal law enforcement officials have been watching the situation with a high degree of interest.
NJ state investigators are now in the process of interviewing teachers and staffers at East High School in Paterson.
Rich Callaway, the union representative at the Paterson NJ high school, recently spoke to the media about the investigation and said that law enforcement officials have not yet made their findings public. Callaway also noted that authorities are not even close to resolving the problem. Beyond that, Callaway urged investigators to look at Eastside High School administrators, not just low-level teachers.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for NJ Attorney General Christopher Porrino indicated that state officials are not currently prepared to confirm or deny that an investigation is happening at this time.
Since this is a criminal probe, it is possible that anyone found to have violated either federal or state laws could wind up being sentenced to time in prison.
Additionally, since the alleged criminal acts involve international students who are juveniles, the NJ Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P, formerly known as DYFS) has also gotten involved and is currently in the middle of its own investigation.
For more information about this case, view the NJ.com article, “Criminal Investigators Looking into Paterson Eastside in Wake of Hoops Scandal.”
