North Bay Shore Man, 75, Charged With Sexually Abusing Two Children

Bernardo Amaya, 75, of Pine Grove Boulevard in North Bay Shore, was arrested Tuesday evening and charged with sexually abusing two children in incidents that investigators say span nearly two decades, Suffolk County police announced March 10.

Special Victims Section detectives took Amaya into custody at his home at 1753 Pine Grove Blvd. around 5 p.m. and charged him with two counts of first-degree sexual abuse and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Police said Amaya inappropriately touched an 8-year-old girl in August, and that during the course of that investigation, detectives determined he had also touched a 4-year-old child in May and June 2007. That second alleged victim is now 22 years old. Police said Amaya came into contact with both children at his Pine Grove Boulevard home, where a family member worked as a childcare provider.

Amaya pleaded not guilty before Judge James Leonick at his arraignment Wednesday at First District Court in Central Islip. Leonick ordered him held on $150,000 cash bail, $300,000 insured bond, or $1.5 million partially secured surety bond. He was represented by the Legal Aid Society of Suffolk County and remained held at the Third Precinct pending the posting of bail.

At the time of his arrest, Amaya was employed as a school bus driver for Educational Bus Inc., a West Babylon company, where he transported high school and middle school students for the South Huntington School District. In a statement, Educational Bus spokesman Lloyd Singer said: "The charges do not involve his role as a bus driver with Educational Bus Transportation, where he transported high school and middle school students. He has now been terminated from employment as a result of the ongoing investigation." South Huntington Superintendent Vito D'Elia confirmed in a letter to district families that Amaya will no longer provide transportation services to students.

Amaya was also a volunteer at Saint Luke's Roman Catholic Church in Brentwood, where he taught adults in a citizenship class and served as an usher. According to a parish statement, Saint Luke's was informed in November 2025 that Amaya was under investigation and immediately prohibited him from participating in any volunteer activities. "The accusations against him are not connected with the Parish or Parish activities, and the alleged misconduct did not occur on Parish property," the parish said. "All volunteers undergo background screening and training for abuse prevention. There is zero tolerance for abuse committed by any Church employee or volunteer." A parishioner who spoke outside the church said: "I've known him for many years. I've never heard anything like that about him."

Separately, Amaya faces a pending endangerment charge in an unrelated case in which he is accused of sucking on the neck of a woman described in court records as severely intellectually disabled and of inappropriately touching her. He pleaded not guilty in that matter as well.

Suffolk County Police Special Victims Section detectives are asking anyone who believes they may have been a victim of Amaya to call 631-852-6184.