Norwalk man charged with sexually assaulting girl, 14
NORWALK — A former substitute teacher who was banned from two Stamford public schools is facing new charges of unlawful restraint and fourth-degree sexual assault.
Norwalk police received a report on Nov. 11 from a teenage girl stating that Joseph Lombardo, 64, “touched the victim inappropriately, and then blocked her ability to leave,” Sgt. Sofia Gulino said.
Investigators with the department’s Special Victim’s Unit discovered video surveillance footage that provided probable cause to apply for an arrest warrant.
Police charged Lombardo
with second-degree unlawful restraint, fourthdegree sexual assault and disorderly conduct. The Norwalk resident turned himself in on Nov. 22 and is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, according to police arrest logs.
In October 2018, Lombardo was arrested in Stamford on a felony destroying evidence charge in connection with an investigation into alleged inappropriate behavior toward a student.
A female student from Stamford High School filed a complaint earlier that year accusing Lombardo of touching her on the lips and harassing her with repeated text messages and phone calls, according to an affidavit for his arrest in the case. Police said at the time that Lombardo erased the text messages from his phone.
During the investigation, police said they discovered students from Westhill High School and the Academy of Information Technology and Engineering had previously made similar complaints about Lombardo.
The principals at those schools banned Lombardo from substituting, with one saying he made “staff and students feel very uncomfortable.”
The district suspended Lombardo on March 29, 2018.
Lombardo denied the accusations and the destroying evidence charge was eventually dropped, according to an attorney with the Law Offices of Philip Russell, who represented him. The charge also does not appear on the state judicial website.
One year later, court records show Lombardo was found guilty of firstdegree criminal trespass on Sept. 4, 2019. He received a suspended sentence of one year in jail and three years of probation. He was charged with the offense on Oct. 19, 2018, for an incident that occurred earlier that month, according to court records.
In July, Lombardo was charged with violating his probation, court records show.