The Newark (N.J.) Police Division began investigating Mr. Picerno, 57, after the department received several complaints regarding indecent behavior.
The first incident allegedly involving Mr. Picerno took place around 10:30 p.m. Sept. 15. Police said Mr. Picerno allegedly left a “lewd and harassing note” outside the door of a 20-year-old University of Delaware student’s home in Newark.
Around 1 a.m. the same evening, police said a 21-year-old student identified “an unknown white male suspect … standing naked near her vehicle while masturbating,” according to the report.
Roughly a half-hour later, two 19-year-old students claimed they had been walking through a parking lot and “a naked white male emerged from behind a set of dumpsters,” the report states. He was allegedly holding his clothes and spoke to both individuals before jogging away.
A fourth incident reportedly took place on the University of Delaware campus Oct. 15, police said, according to the report.
Police positively identified Mr. Picerno’s fingerprints on the note he left during the first incident and used the university’s surveillance cameras to identify him in the related encounters, according to the report.
A police spokesperson told ROI-NJ.com Monday authorities do not know why Mr. Picerno was at the university Sept. 15, and that he does not maintain an affiliation with the university.
Mr. Picerno was arraigned and received a $5,500 unsecured bond, police said, according to the report. He was also ordered not to have contact with the university, the city of Newark or the victims.
A spokesperson for RWJBarnabas Health told Becker’s Hospital Review Tuesday, “Mr. Picerno is on leave. Any inquiries about non-RWJBarnabas Health matters should be directed to his personal attorney.”
Mr. Picerno’s biography has also been scrubbed from the health system’s website.
Editor’s note: This article was updated at 9:45 a.m. to include a statement from RWJBarnabas Health.
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