A bus driver for Newton Public Schools (NPS) has been charged with kidnapping three Newton children with communication disabilities who attend the city’s preschool program, according to Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan.
Justin Vose, a 42-year-old from Bedford, Mass., was working as a bus driver for the Newton Early Childhood Program contracted through bus charter company JSC Transportation during the alleged incidents.
After one of the students was dropped off late at daycare, the education program through NPS notified the Newton Police Department of suspicious activity by the bus driver.
The driver’s GPS location allegedly revealed he had entered the daycare’s parking lot, but instead of dropping the child off, Vose drove to a secluded part of the lot near the tree line.
Further investigation allegedly showed Vose had driven three children to secluded areas and turned off the audio and video recording in the bus for up to 20 minutes at a time, without authorization from NPS, parents, or the bus company, according to the district attorney’s statement.
All of the children involved are between the ages of 3 and 5 and semi-nonverbal or struggle with communication, the district attorney said.
NPS asked the bus charter to put Vose on leave following these allegations, according to a statement from NPS.
Vose passed required background checks for NPS and had no history of prior incidents, the school district said.
Vose is scheduled to be arraigned in Middlesex County Superior Court in Woburn, Mass., on Oct. 25.
