Former Salem Elementary School Gym Teacher Faces New Charges

SALEM, MA — A 37-year-old former Saltonstall School physical education teacher from North Andover was in court last week facing charges in addition to the 32 counts of aggravated assault and battery of a child under 14 that he was charged with in June.

Salem police in June accused Daniel Hakim of assaulting 10 girls at the school between 2015 and 2018.

The new charges, according to the Salem News, include aggravated rape of a child after two more girls came forward with accusations.

Hakim pleaded not guilty to the previous charges in June.

Hakim was arrested in June following what Salem police said was a five-month investigation into new charges against him after the Department of Children and Families found previous complaints against him from 2018 to be not prosecutable.

Salem police said Hakim's actions were brought to the attention of school officials in 2018 and Hakim was removed from the school and suspended pending an investigation. He did not return to teaching after 2018.

Following a public forum in 2021, police said additional girls then shared accounts of improper conduct and police launched the investigation that led to the new charges.

According to the Salem News, Hakim previously also taught at a "Teen Challenge" program at the Brooks School in North Andover, at Shawsheen Elementary School in Wilmington, and at Collaborative for Educational Services.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education revoked Hakim's teaching license in 2020.

Salem police said all victims in the case who have come forward have been girls.

Salem Superintendent Steve Zrike, who came to the district in 2020 after Hakim's employment ended, said in June that Salem Public Schools will continue to provide ongoing resources for students and families who have been impacted by these accusations.

"This arrest and (the ensuing) arraignment show the strength of victims and survivors when they are supported and empowered to step out of the shadows to tell their accounts," Zrike said in June, in a joint statement with Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll and Salem Police Chief Lucas Miller.

Hakim was scheduled to be back in court on the previous charges on Jan. 12.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)