Former Plymouth-Canton Schools Employee Pleads Guilty To Sexual Assault

PLYMOUTH TOWNSHIP, MI — A former special-needs bus monitor for Plymouth-Canton Community Schools is serving 10-20 years in prison for sexually assaulting a girl. Rocky Emmanuel Perillo, 47, of Plymouth Township, pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal sexual conduct and child sexually abusive commercial activity in Wayne County Circuit Court earlier this year.

The sexual assault occurred at a Northville Township apartment while Perillo wasn’t on-duty for the district, according to a Plymouth Observer report. His victim was just seven years old at the time of the incident, the newspaper reported. The girl is now 16.

Perillo's guilty plea came after authorities agreed to dismiss other criminal charges. Those allegations included criminal sexual conduct involving a disabled woman for whom he was caring in Plymouth Township, the Plymouth Observer reported. The woman came forward after learning of charges involving the young girl.

Perillo was arrested in May 2016 after a girl raised allegations that he had sexually assaulted her. He denied the accusations until the plea agreement was reached, the Plymouth Observer reported.

"Defendant Rocky Perillo is behind bars because Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Michelle Jarczewski did an excellent job obtaining a guilty plea in this case for child sexually abusive activity with a sentence of 10-20 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections," Assistant Wayne County Prosecutor Maria Miller told the Plymouth Observer.

The Plymouth-Canton Community Schools hired Perillo through an independent company, Durham School Services. The sexual assault charges were unrelated to his work for the schools and the victim in the case was not a Plymouth-Canton student, the Plymouth Observer reported.

"Safety is our top priority and we will continue to keep that as our focus across all areas of our business,” the district wrote in a statement to the newspaper. “We would like to reassure P-CCS parents and members in the community that we have a stringent hiring process for bus drivers and monitors."

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