Former Delaware teacher convicted in child rape case
A former Wilmington teacher was convicted last week of repeatedly raping a child following a yearslong investigation.
On Oct. 22, Christopher Crisona, 58, was convicted of three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, two counts of unlawful sexual contact, one count of unlawful sexual penetration and one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child.
"Sexual abuse of any kind is unconscionable; for it to come at the hands of individuals in positions of power and sacred trust is a horror unto its own,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings in a statement. “I cannot imagine the suffering this victim endured, nor the bravery it took to come forward."
Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673.
The investigation found that Crisona, who was working as a teacher at St. Thomas the Apostle School in Wilmington at the time, raped a child multiple times between Sept. 1, 1994, and June 15, 1995.
Crisona’s abuse was discovered during the course of an investigation that began with an anonymous report to the Diocese of Wilmington concerning reported sexual abuse of the same victim by Father John Taggart and Father John Francis O’Brien, who has since died.
Taggart is accused of repeatedly sexually abusing the same victim during the child's seventh- and eighth-grade years at St. Thomas the Apostle School. The abuse reportedly continued after the child began high school.
Former Chicago community center employee accused of posing as basketball coach, grooming teen: CPD
Andre Jackson worked at Salvation Army-operated Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in West Pullman
CHICAGO (WLS) -- A former employee of the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in West Pullman is accused of posing as a basketball coach to meet boys and sending inappropriate messages to a teenage boy, according to prosecutors.
Andre Jackson, 56, was a familiar presence at the Salvation Army-operated community center, a popular gathering place for teens. Prosecutors allege Jackson recruited teenagers at the center to play AAU basketball.
Luke Carrington, who plays basketball at the facility, said he was surprised by the allegations. "That's crazy because I just thought he was a basketball coach," Carrington said.
Another player at the center, Demetrius Price, said the allegations were unexpected but described Jackson as someone who often kept to himself. "I didn't expect that out of him, but at the same time, he do be like a little creepy, like just lurking, like he would never talk to nobody. He would just be lurking," Price said.
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According to prosecutors, Jackson reconnected late last year at the community center with a 15-year-old boy he had first met two years earlier. Cook county prosecutors said Jackson then texted the teen daily for months.
Prosecutors allege Jackson sent messages that included: "Told you I'm going to make you love me," "I'm going to massage you naked," and "You ready to start showing your body?"
Prosecutors also allege Jackson offered to buy the teen basketball shoes and a truck.
Kroc Center member Constance Nichols reacted strongly to the allegations. "It's disgusting. It's disturbing. I mean, I can go on and on. It's just disheartening," Nichols said.
Prosecutors said the teen's mother overheard a call between Jackson and her son in August and later read the messages on her child's phone. The family then contacted the Kroc Center and police.
In a statement, the Salvation Army, which operates the center, said it is "aware of an incident involving a former employee." The organization added that "The well-being of the young people who participate in our programs is of the highest priority."
A Salvation Army spokesperson declined to say how Jackson was employed at the center or when his employment ended.
Jackson was arrested earlier this week and ordered held pending trial.
Police: Phoenix assistant principal didn't report adoptive daughters' abuse; son faces child sex abuse charges
PHOENIX, Az — A Phoenix middle school assistant principal is facing charges after Glendale police say she knew her son was sexually abusing her two adoptive daughters and didn’t report it.
Dr. Ramona Ramirez, 73, works at Isaac Middle School. The Isaac School District says in a letter to families they've put her on administrative leave. She’s charged with child endangerment and failure to report abuse.
Her son, 32-year-old Vicente San Diego Ramirez, is charged with sexual conduct with a minor, molestation, indecent exposure, and exploitation of a minor.
The case started Oct. 14, when a 16-year-old girl went to a Glendale Police school resource officer. She told him her adoptive brother had been sexually abusing her and her 15-year-old sister.
Police say the abuse went on for years, starting when the girls were around 9. Investigators also found out about video recordings involving the girls and Ramirez.
The girls had already told their adoptive mother, police said.
Detectives from the department’s Special Victims Unit got involved, along with the Arizona Department of Child Safety. They served search warrants at two homes tied to Ramirez.
At the family’s home, Glendale Police Sgt. Justin Ramsey said, Dr. Ramirez tried to keep officers out.
“She tells the officers that they’re not allowed to come into her house, even though we have a search warrant,” Ramsey said. He added that Ramirez also locked her son’s bedroom door.
Detectives tracked Vicente Ramirez to a family rental property in Glendale and arrested him there. Dr. Ramirez was arrested later during a traffic stop and booked into the Maricopa County Jail.
Virginia Bagby, who runs the National Child Abuse Hotline at Childhelp, says people often assume reporting abuse is only a job for teachers and school staff.
“It’s pretty safe to assume anybody who has contact with children or is responsible for the care of children, including parents, are mandated to report suspicion of child abuse and neglect,” she said.
That’s the case in Arizona. State law names a child’s parent, stepparent, or guardian as someone required to report suspected abuse. When the abuse is sexual, failing to report it is a felony.
Sexual abuse has also become a bigger part of Arizona’s child abuse cases. In 2020, it was involved in 3.9% of the state’s confirmed child abuse victims. By 2024, that number was 6.4%. It went up every year in between, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Bagby says the hotline is hearing from more kids now, many of them through new ways to get help online.
“We have seen kiddos as young as seven reaching out to us through web chat,” she said. “They’re very adept with technology, and so it's possible now for younger kids to be reaching out.”
In the letter sent to families on Oct. 19, the Isaac School District said it found out about the arrest on the afternoon of Oct. 16, and that as far as it knows, the arrest has nothing to do with Dr. Ramirez’s work with students.
Both girls are in DCS custody for now. Glendale police say the investigation is still open.
If you think a child is being abused, call the Arizona Department of Child Safety hotline at 1-888-SOS-CHILD (1-888-767-2445). You can also call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
Switzerland freezes MSF funding after reports of sexual exploitation in Chad
The MSF internal report found a pattern of abuse and sexual exploitation by some local and foreign staff working in Chad along the Sudanese border.
Switzerland's Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has suspended funding of CHF1.25 million ($1.52 million) to Doctors Without Borders (MSF) following reports that the humanitarian NGO failed to adequately inform Swiss authorities of the scale of the reports of sexual misconduct by staff in Chad.
The SDC is Switzerland's international cooperation agency within the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). The suspended funds represent 20% of the total money pledged by the Swiss government to MSF for the current year.
The SDC first learned of potential sexual misconduct by MSF in Chad in November 2024. However, the matter only entered the public eye after the Associated Press published an MSF internal investigation report in June 2026.
The MSF internal report (as revealed by AP) found a pattern of abuse and sexual exploitation by some local and foreign staff working in Chad along the Sudanese border, in some cases targeting underage girls or trading food or jobs for sex with refugees.
Curfew placed on some girls in camps
According to Swiss media and the AP, in at least one camp, community leaders imposed a curfew on girls to keep them away from aid workers, not from armed groups.
MSF found 59 allegations of abuse and said 18 staff members were dismissed and barred from future employment. The report also said some of the repeated exploitation suggested potentially organized “sexual trafficking.”
Following this, the SDC demanded the full MSF internal files.
Now, over the last weekend, NZZ am Sonntag obtained internal e-mails from federal and SDC employees and meeting minutes which reveal that the federal development workers were "poorly informed" of MSF's activities despite continuing to fund them.
Among one of the things that SDC employees were unaware of (until June 2026) was that 6 of the 18 dismissed employees were employed by the Swiss section of Doctors Without Borders.
The issue involves taxpayer money. MSF itself said that the Swiss federal government supported the organization's projects in Chad and South Sudan in 2024 and 2025 with a total of around seven million Swiss francs. In total, MSF received almost CHF 12 million from the SDC in 2025.
The federal government is now withholding the last portion of the core contribution for 2026, meaning CHF 1.25 million will remain blocked for the time being. This was confirmed to The Jerusalem Post by SDC on Thursday.
“The SDC notes that MSF has failed to fulfill its contractual obligation to report incidents comprehensively and promptly," the spokesperson said. "The final tranche of the core contribution for 2026 has therefore been suspended pending the completion of a review of the information now received."
The spokesperson also said that, since June 2026, the SDC has requested and received additional detailed information from MSF regarding the reported cases and the measures taken in response.
"The SDC is currently reviewing the actions implemented by MSF, with particular attention to victim support, sanctions imposed on perpetrators, and the strengthening of prevention, safeguarding, and oversight mechanisms," they told the Post. "The review of the information received, as well as the SDC’s overall assessment, is still ongoing."
"As part of this process, the SDC will also examine the final report requested from MSF concerning these incidents. This report must demonstrate that all outstanding investigations have been completed and that the measures implemented are considered effective, satisfactory, and sustainable. Furthermore, the SDC reserves the right to initiate an independent external investigation if deemed necessary."
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