{"id":312804,"date":"2026-08-03T20:18:30","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T20:18:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/312804\/"},"modified":"2026-08-03T20:18:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T20:18:30","slug":"bronx-child-sex-predator-used-nyc-shelters-as-hunting-ground-for-victims-da","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/312804\/","title":{"rendered":"Bronx child sex predator used NYC shelters as hunting ground for victims: DA"},"content":{"rendered":"

A monstrous accused predator<\/a> turned relationships he built with fellow parents in the NYC shelter system<\/a> into a hunting ground for child sex abuse victims \u2014 taking grotesque videos of his exploits with youngsters who thought of him as their godfather, Bronx prosecutors said Monday.<\/p>\n

Stephen Charles, 42, fidgeted as a prosecutor read the grim, graphic details of his alleged abuse in Bronx Supreme Court, while his accusers\u2019 family members wept in shock in the courtroom. He was ordered held without bail after pleading not guilty Monday.<\/p>\n

Charles is charged with sexually abusing a half-dozen victims<\/a> \u2014 four boys and a girl, ages 10 to 16, and an 18-year-old man \u2014 over an eight-year stretch starting in 2018. He was related to one of his victims, but the others were youngsters he met when became close with their families as he and his own children lived in two shelters in the Bronx.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis has been very shocking,\u201d one woman said, through tears, as she left left the courtroom.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe played this role of godfather\u2026 He did it in my own apartment, while I was working. I hope that he pays for everything that he\u2019s done.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ConvictedConvicted sex offender Stephen Charles appears in Bronx Supreme Court for an arraignment on multiple sex assault charges Thursday, Aug. 3, 2026, in the Bronx. (Barry Williams\/ New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

Prosecutors fear Charles, who\u2019s already a registered sex offender from a crime he committed in 2002, may have even more alleged victims.<\/p>\n

Charles began using the city\u2019s shelter system as a hunting ground for abuse victims in\u00a0April 2018 while he and his four biological children lived in a shelter on Boynton Ave. in the Bronx, Assistant D.A. Rachael Baughman said. His family became close to those of his eventual victims.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey would share holidays together, birthdays together,\u201d Baughman said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe would watch these children and their siblings. His kids were friends with their kids,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd all of these parents and their children viewed Mr. Charles as their godfather.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those relationships continued as he moved to a second shelter, then to an apartment, but his friendly facade shattered after two of his kids ran away from home on June 20, Baughman said. An investigation that followed would eventually lead to a number of the victims coming forward, Baughman said.<\/p>\n

\"ConvictedConvicted sex offender Stephen Charles appears in Bronx Supreme Court for an arraignment on multiple sex assault charges Thursday, Aug. 3, 2026, in the Bronx. (Barry Williams\/ New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Prosecutors learned that Charles would make the children he\u2019d forced into his perverse orbit perform sexual acts on him, and he would perform acts on them, often abusing and raping one child as another watched, Baughman said. At times, he \u201ctortured\u201d some of his victims with sex toys, she said.<\/p>\n

Investigators found cell phone videos of him raping the children, taken from his point of view, the prosecutor said. So far, they\u2019ve only gone through two of the eight electronic devices they seized. A grand jury indicted him on 48 counts, including predatory sexual assault against a child and rape.<\/p>\n

Police put his photo out to the public on Thursday, and when he showed up in the homeless shelter system Friday, cops got a notification and arrested him.<\/p>\n

Charles was already a convicted sex offender prior to his recent arrest. In 2004, after Charles got probation for his earlier conviction, he was designated a \u201clevel 1\u201d sex offender \u2014 the lowest risk level, meaning his name doesn\u2019t appear on the state\u2019s public list of sex offenders. Even so, he violated the terms of his probation over the years, and was convicted of failing to update his sex offender registration in 2018, Baughman said.<\/p>\n

\"ConvictedConvicted sex offender Stephen Charles appears in Bronx Supreme Court for an arraignment on multiple sex assault charges Thursday, Aug. 3, 2026, in the Bronx. (Barry Williams\/ New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not clear how his status as a level 1 offender might have affected his access to the city\u2019s shelter system. A Department of Homeless Services spokeswoman did not immediately return messages seeking comment Monday.<\/p>\n

Judge Eugene Bowan ordered him held without bail until his return to court Sept. 1.<\/p>\n

The proceedings in court Monday were slightly delayed when Charles told court officers he was afraid to take an elevator to the third-floor courtroom. \u201cHe says that he has not been in an elevator for 25 years,\u201d his lawyer, Scott Spivek, told the judge.<\/p>\n

Charles ultimately acquiesced rather than face a possible order he be presented by force. His accusers\u2019 family members grumbled with disbelief as he delayed his appearance,<\/p>\n

Ain\u2019t nothing wrong with him,\u201d one scoffed.<\/p>\n

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