Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. confirmed the guilty plea of a former afterschool program employee for acts of sexual abuse against an 8-year-old student in Harlem. The statement detailed that 27-year-old Miles McNeal pleaded guilty to Course of Sexual Abuse Against a Child in the Second Degree in New York State Supreme Court. According to the agreement of his plea, McNeal is expected to serve a five-year sentence in state prison and undergo Sex Offender Registration in New York State, as reported by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.
McNeal's sentencing is set for September 16, where he will also receive a full and final order of protection. "Miles McNeal is facing accountability for exploiting his position as a school employee to take advantage of one of his students, who was only 8 years old," Bragg stated. He also extended gratitude towards the survivor for courageously stepping forward and emphasized the continued efforts to prosecute those threatening student safety. The district attorney's message underlined the Child Abuse Bureau's commitment to support survivors and to efficiently hold abusers accountable, as per the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.
The egregious abuse occurred between September 8, 2022, and August 18, 2023, where McNeal, serving as the child's afterschool and camp teacher, would systematically isolate her from others to an empty classroom for the abuse to take place. Court documents revealed that the abuse began with McNeal photographing the survivor's body and escalated to sexual abuse.
Assistant D.A. Samantha LiTrenta is actively handling the prosecution of this case alongside Assistant D.A. Christina Kapalko, under the leadership of Assistant D.A. Heather Buchanan, Chief of the Child Abuse Bureau, and Executive Assistant D.A. Justin McNabney, Chief of the Special Victims Division. Contributions to the case also came from Child Victim Specialist Sierrah Smalls and former Trial Preparation Assistants Ryan Dyke with Investigative Analyst Tessa Ferrall providing valuable assistance. A special acknowledgment was given by D.A. Bragg to the NYPD, notably Detective Denisse Caceres of the Special Victims Division, for their role in the investigation.
