A teacher has been axed by a top private school in New York after allegedly attempting to film an 11-year-old pupil using a toilet.
Matthew Chicas was fired from his post as maths teacher at Xavier High School in Chelsea after the alleged act on April 15.
The 29-year-old has pleaded not guilty to charges of unlawful surveillance, possessing a sexual performance by a child and endangering the welfare of a child.
It is claimed the teacher tried to capture the boy on his cell phone from the toilet next door, court papers say.
Chicas was working on the REACH leadership program and Jesuit preparatory class for middle school boys at Regis High School on the Upper East Side.
The teacher was suspended by Xavier after he was arrested in April, and parents were told via email on Wednesday that Chicas was “no longer employed” by the school.
Jack Raslowsky, the school’s president, told the New York Post that Chicas’ contract had not been renewed after his suspension.
No further comment was given.
After Wednesday’s hearing, Chicas was freed to leave with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office saying the charges were not bail eligible.
In documents, it was claimed the victim went to the fourth-floor bathroom at the school, where one person was in a stall.
The child reported going to toilet and hearing a sound of someone moving in the stall next to him – and looked up to see a cell phone with a black camera hanging over into his cubicle, it is alleged.
The camera was “pointing down”, the complaint claims.
Chicas will return to court next on September 13.
His lawyer, Donald Vogelman, said his client “is not guilty of the charges and he looks forward to his day in court”.
The youngster’s mother Olaya Lopez is suing the school.
Xavier High School is an influential institution previously attended by the likes of TV weatherman Al Roker, journalist and lawyer Greta Van Susteren and baseball star Jeff Bagwell.
It costs around $21,000 each year to attend.
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