The paraprofessional busted for allegedly whacking an autistic student with a ruler inside a Brooklyn school was released on his own recognizance during a Saturday arraignment.
Aries Baluyot, 44, was ordered to stay away from the 20-year-old student.
Baluyot allegedly “used a wooden ruler to strike the [student’s] upper thigh at least 10 times … as a form of punishment” on both Monday and Tuesday on the third floor of P.S. K271, a vocational training school for students with developmental disabilities, according to the criminal complaint.
The victim’s father noticed bruising on his son’s upper thigh on Tuesday, called 911 and notified school officials.
Baluyot was charged Friday with second-degree assault, according to authorities.
“This alleged behavior is deeply disturbing and has no place in our schools,” DOE spokesman Doug Cohen said in a statement. “He’s being suspended without pay.”
But during the arraignment, Baluyot’s attorney Sal E. Strazzulo insisted “these charges are made up against my client.”
Baluyot has worked at the school for 20 year, and also took care of his elderly mother, said the attorney, who said there were no similar complaints about the teacher.