A gym teacher at a Bronx special education school is facing child endangerment charges for exposing himself and then performing another lewd act with a container of Lysol Wipes in front of a group of children, prosecutors said Thursday.
Criminal allegations against Dana Barschdorf, 44, were made following his bizarre actions in front of six students at P.S. 723 on Webster Ave. near Claremont Parkway, just outside of Claremont Park, officials said.
The students ranged in age between 9 and 11 years old, prosecutors said. Teachers at P.S. 723 serve students with autism and other special needs enrolled in kindergarten through fourth grade.
“This alleged behavior is completely unacceptable,” city Department of Education spokeswoman Jenna Lyle said in a statement. “This employee has been reassigned pending an investigation.”
Barschdorf stunned both students and paraprofessionals about 8:45 a.m. Tuesday when he allegedly was spotted “wiping his buttocks with a Lysol Wipe in the presence of their six students,” court documents read.
He then was seen putting “his penis inside a Lysol Wipe container also in the presence of those children,” the complaint reads.
Students and administrators were so alarmed by Barschdorf’s behavior that they immediately called the police, who took the gym teacher into custody and initially charged him with two counts of attempted lewdness.
Bronx prosecutors upgraded the charges to endangering the welfare of a child, as well as harassment and indecent exposure.
During Barschdorf’s arraignment Wednesday evening, a judge ordered the gym teacher released without bail. He was also ordered to enroll in an alternative court program focusing on problem solving.
He’s expected to return to court on Feb. 14.
A call to Barschdorf’s attorney, Nicole Bellina, was not immediately returned Thursday.