‘I WITNESS FEAR UPON MY CHILDREN’S FACES EVERY TIME THE DOORBELL RINGS’
A Pleasantville man was sentenced yesterday to two-to-six years in prison after pleading guilty to a dozen charges relating to a 2019 incident of child sexual abuse in Port Chester.
John Passaretti, 52, admitted to taking sexually explicit photos of a young child, the daughter of an acquaintance, at the family home. Passaretti used his familiarity with the family to create a scenario in which he was alone for several moments with the child he abused. Video of the incident was captured by a motion-triggered security camera.
Passaretti, who has been held at the Westchester County Jail since his arrest following the incident, pleaded guilty to the following charges:
· Two counts of Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance, a class C felony
· Two counts of Promoting an Obscene Performance by a Child, a class D felony
· Two counts of Promoting a Sexual Performance by a Child, a class D felony
· Two counts of Possessing an Obscene Performance by a Child, a class E felony
· Two counts of Possessing a Sexual Performance by a Child, a class E felony
· Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, a class D felony
· Endangering the Welfare of a Child, a misdemeanor
Upon release, he will be required to register as a sex offender.
The case was before State Supreme Court Judge Barry E. Warhit.
In victim impact statements read at the sentencing, both parents spoke of the enormous impact of the incident on their children and on the family’s home life.
“My children were trusting and friendly, fearless to explore but now, instead I witness fear upon my children’s faces every time the [door]bell rings,” the victim’s mother said. The victim’s father spoke of his anxiety about the many impacts of the trauma of the abuse on his daughter. “Imagine how this must feel when something of this magnitude happens in your own home while you are there,” he said.
“This was a terrible crime that traumatized a young child and had a devastating impact on the entire family,” said Westchester District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah. “Crimes against children are every parent’s nightmare and this case is a perfect example of how perpetrators of child sex abuse often manipulate relationships of trust. We must do all we can in law enforcement to prevent these and hold perpetrators accountable.”
The incident was investigated by the Pleasantville and Port Chester Police Departments in collaboration with the Westchester District Attorney’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Janelle Armentano and Mary Clark-DiRusso.’
