A Union County grand jury has returned a 16-count indictment against a 30-year veteran of the East Orange Police Department charged with serious explicit crimes against four minors, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel announced Tuesday.
According to Prosecutor Daniel, Edward Giles, 61, formerly of Roselle, is charged with aggravated explicit assault of a minor, aggravated explicit assault of a minor victim over whom the defendant had supervisory or disciplinary power, explicit offenses against a minor victim, endangering the welfare of a minor by photographing or videotaping minor in a prohibited explicit act and invasion of privacy.
Giles, a 30-year veteran of the East Orange Police Department, served as a community resource officer and youth football director for the East Orange Police Athletic League (PAL).
According to Prosecutor Daniel, in 2019, a seven-month investigation led by the Union County Prosecutor’s Office’s Special Victims Unit (SVU) was initiated following a referral by the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, who also assisted the investigation alongside the Prosecutor’s Office’s Cyber Crime Task Force and the Roselle Police Department.
Investigators determined that several of the alleged incidents occurred at Giles’s home on the 300 block of West 4th Avenue in Roselle, according to SVU Director and Union County Assistant Prosecutor Caroline Lawlor, who is prosecuting the case.
The initial investigation revealed that the first victim, a student-athlete playing for the East Orange Wildcats youth football team, then coached by Giles, was allegedly assaulted on several occasions from 1998 into 2000 when he was between 11 and 13 years old, Lawlor said.
The investigation also found that the second victim, also a youth football player, was allegedly assaulted from 2002 into 2003 when he was between 12 and 13 years old.
According to Prosecutor Daniel, following the execution of a search warrant at Giles’ home, forensic analysis of recovered recorded materials resulted in the addition of several charges.
Prosecutor Daniel stated that the recordings were made between April 2018 and October 2019, when the victims were between 13 and 15 years old.
Anyone with additional information about Giles’ activities is urged to contact Union County Prosecutor’s Office Lieutenant Sofia Santos at 908-577-4256.