NJ teacher calls cops: Boy shackled in bedroom, police say

NEWARK — Police found a 12-year-old boy tied to a fan in his bedroom after a teacher noticed something wrong during a remote-learning class on Wednesday, officials said.

The boy, who was shackled with chains and padlocks, was removed from the foster home on Clinton Avenue and taken to University Hospital, police said. He is now in the custody of the state Department of Child Protection and Permanency.

Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose credited the teacher at the South 17th Street School for having the "courage" to contact police.

"We are investigating this incident along with the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office to gather as much information as possible about how and why this child was put in this horrific situation. We are pleased that he’s now safe and we are grateful that his teacher suspected that he was in need of police assistance," Ambrose said in a statement.

Police referred a question about other children in the apartment to the Department of Child Protection and Permanency, which did not immediately return a message on Thursday afternoon.

The foster parent, Wanser E. Brown, 66,  was charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

Newark public schools have been remote for the entire academic year due to the pandemic.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ