Northport Middle School custodian charged with 13 counts of criminal weapon possession
A custodian at Northport Middle School was arraigned last night for charges related to felony gun possession and endangerment of a minor.
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Updated October 2, 2024 at 5:58pm: A heavily redacted copy of the arrest report, sent via FOIL request to the Northport Journal by the Suffolk County Police Department on Wednesday, October 2, indicates that Scott Leonhardt was arrested at his East Northport home shortly after 10pm on Wednesday, September 25. The 52-year-old former Northport High School student who, according to his Facebook profile, has been a custodian for the district since 2016, pled not guilty to all 16 charges against him. He will next appear in court on October 22.
A custodian at Northport Middle School was picked up by police officers while working his evening shift this past Wednesday, September 25 and transported to a search warrant location where he was placed under arrest, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office told the Journal. He was then taken to the Fourth Precinct in Smithtown.
The defendant was arraigned last night for charges related to felony gun possession and endangerment of a minor, the DA’s office confirmed.
According to public court records, the defendant has been charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree (semi-automatic rifles), 11 counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree (ammo clips), two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree (knife/cutting instrument), and one count of endangering the welfare of a child.
The semi-automatic rifle and ammo charges are all Class D felonies, falling within the category of a violent felony offense with a maximum possible sentence of seven years in prison per charge, if found guilty.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to all charges and will appear in Suffolk County’s 1st District Court on October 1 at 9am.
In an email to community members sent last night, Northport-East Northport Superintendent of Schools Dr. Dave Moyer disclosed that a staff member was arrested “in connection with charges that are unrelated to the district.” He continued, “While these charges have no direct connection to the district or any of its students, upon learning of this, the district took immediate action to restrict the employee’s access to all district property and access to students or staff.”
