Church Pastor Committed Sex Crimes Against Teen In 3 Bergen County Towns: Prosecutor

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — A 74-year-old church pastor was charged this week with repeated sex crimes that were committed against a teen in three Bergen County towns, prosecutors said Friday.

Stephen E. Sweet, who lives in Paramus, has been charged with two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault, 10 counts of second-degree sexual assault, three counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, three counts of third-degree aggravated criminal sexual contact, and three counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, said the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office on Friday.

Prosecutors say that on Thursday, July 11, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit was contacted regarding the alleged sexual assault of a child that occurred in the past.

Investigators determined that Sweet "committed various acts of sexual contact and sexual assault on multiple occasions over the course of several years when the child was between the ages of 13 and 18 at locations in River Edge, Paramus, and Ridgewood," said prosecutors in a release on Friday.

On Thursday, July 11, Sweet was arrested in Paramus, charged, and taken to the Bergen County Jail for a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack.

Sweet has been identified as the pastor at a church in River Edge.

Prosecutor Mark Musella thanked the Paramus Police Department and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance in the investigation.