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N. Andover wrestling coach pleads not guilty to child porn charge

Print Posted by Martin Finucane February 15, 2011 03:44 PM

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Pool Photo/Mary Schwalm/AP

David Castricone listened to his lawyer, John Baccari, as he was arraigned today.

By Brian R. Ballou and Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

LAWRENCE -- A search at the home of a celebrated North Andover High School wrestling coach found 77 pages of "personal photos of females" who appeared to be unaware that their pictures were being taken, a police report says.

David T. Castricone, 60, who has coached the team for 25 years, pleaded not guilty this morning to a charge of possessing child pornography. He was released on $1,500 bail.

A police report filed in court laying out the evidence against Castricone also said that the coach, the owner of a roofing company in North Andover, entered the girls' locker room at the high school at least nine times over the course of the last month. Castricone allegedly stayed two to seven minutes each time.

A witness told police she had seen an older man in the locker room on Feb. 7 with his hands inside a locker and a black bag next to him on the floor. Administrators allegedly reviewed surveillance video and determined that the man was Castricone.

The police report did not say what officials believe Castricone was doing in the locker room. Nor did it say who was shown in the "personal photos" found at Castricone's home.

The report did observe, though, that if a camera were placed in the locker where the witness allegedly saw Castricone, the device would be afforded a full view of the lockers on one wall of the room. And it observed that the holes in the locker door were large enough for a camera to shoot through.

The report said a search of Castricone's home also found at least eight child pornography pictures, as well as child erotica, and adult pornography.

According to the report, when confronted by police, Castricone said he was having a "tough time" because his wife had started going to Florida for the winter and he was all by himself. He said he "gets anxious" because his son had died and that he had been seeing a counselor.

He also told authorities he went into the girls' locker room to look for a an expensive scale used to weigh competitors in wrestling matches. There are two girls on his wrestling team.

John Baccari, Castricone's defense lawyer, said today that his client until Monday had an "unsullied reputation" and was highly regarded in the community.

He said that his client was "profoundly embarrassed due to the nature of the allegations."

Castricone was placed on administrative leave on Feb. 8. On Feb. 11, police executed a search warrant at his home. He was arrested Monday.

Castricone resigned from his position Monday, citing health and personal reasons, the school system said.

Judge Robert Sullivan scheduled a pre-trial conference for March 30.

Castricone was the Globe's Division 2 wrestling coach of the year in 2010. He has coached teams in Massachusetts for a total of 36 years. His North Andover team is third all-time in wrestling victories and first in New England. The team is attempting to defend its 2009-10 Division 2 state title on Wednesday.