Former Salem Teacher Accused Of Assaulting Saltonstall School Girls

SALEM, MA — A 36-year-old former Saltonstall School physical education teacher from North Andover was charged Wednesday with 32 counts of aggravated assault and battery of a child under 14, with Salem police accusing him of assaulting 10 girls at the school between 2015 and 2018.

Daniel Hakim, 36, was arrested Wednesday night following a six-month investigation and was to be arraigned Thursday in Salem Superior Court.

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.

While the Department of Children and Families deemed those claims not to be prosecutable, police said an additional claim of misconduct from 2016 led to Hakim being charged in 2021.

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

"As community leaders and, most importantly, as parents we are sickened by the abuse from a trusted adult that these children were subjected to and the ongoing pain and trauma these young survivors and their families are and will continue to face," Salem Police Chief Lucas Miller, Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll and Superintendent Steve Zrike said in a joint statement Thursday morning. "The actions for which Daniel Hakim has been arrested and charged are abominations. We are grateful for and applaud the cooperation of the victims and their families, their patience with the detailed investigation, and, above all, their courage in coming forward."

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.

Zrike said Salem Public Schools will continue to provide ongoing resources for students and families who have been impacted by these accusations.

"We know that any allegation of inappropriate interactions with children is disturbing and concerning, however we are limited in the information we can share beyond this statement, both for legal reasons due to the ongoing case and for student privacy," Miller, Driscoll and Zrike said in their statement. "Nevertheless, we are all of us fully committed to the safety and well-being of the students who attend Salem Public Schools and are therefore prepared to work with prosecutors to ensure the fullest accountability of the law in this terrible case.

"This arrest and (Thursday's) arraignment show the strength of victims and survivors when they are supported and empowered to step out of the shadows to tell their accounts."

(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.)