A bus driver accused of sexually assaulting two children during a game of hide-and-seek and bribing them to stay quiet will stay in jail as the charges against him proceed through the court system.

Thomas Thomasevich, 70, of Oakland, was ordered detained by Judge David Ironson at a hearing in Superior Court of Morris County in Morristown Monday. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, including four counts of sexual assault.

Thomasevich is accused of playing a hide-and-seek type game while driving students to school in Kinnelon, officials said. During the game, Thomasevich would pretend to close his eyes and try to identify the children by touching them inappropriately, Assistant Morris County Prosecutor Gloria Rispoli said in court.

The game allegedly took place between October 2019 and January 2020 in the 30 minutes before school started, Rispoli said. All the children were under 13, but it’s not clear outside which school the abuse is alleged to have occurred.

When the children protested against the touching, Thomasevich would say it was an accident because his eyes were closed, Rispoli said.

“Clearly the allegations are disturbing, and they’re serious,” Ironson said in ordering him detained.

Thomasevich seemed unsteady on his feet during the detention hearing, tripping on the step up into the courtroom as officers lead him into the room. His hands and voice shook slightly as he affirmed he understood the charges against him. He waived at his family as he was led away from the defense table after the hearing.

His defense attorney, John Bruno, argued unsuccessfully that Thomasevich’s “spotless” employment and criminal histories, family ties and an unspecified medical condition would make him an appropriate candidate for pre-trial release.

“My client is confident that when all the facts come out he’s going to clear up a huge misunderstanding,” Bruno said in a statement to NJ Advance Media following the hearing.

The alleged bribes of candy and doughnuts so the children would not report the touching was of particular concern, Ironson said.

“He groomed children to be cooperative and play the game and manipulated them to be silent,” Rispoli said of the sweets, adding that Thomasevich told the children he could lose his job if any other adults found out about the game.

One of the alleged victims eventually alerted a guidance councilor, who reported it to the police, Rispoli said. The two children who were allegedly assaulted, as well as four children who saw the game, all gave similar statements to police, she said.

Bruno said the prosecution’s characterization of the game was “out of context”, adding that Thomasevich is not accused of touching the children’s skin directly or penetrating them. Bruno compared the types of touch during the game to a school coach tapping an athlete on their bottom ahead of a game.

“Never for the life of him did he thought he crossed the line in any respect,” Bruno said.

Before parking at the school to play the game, Thomasevich is accused of allowing an unsafe environment on the school bus as he was driving, prosecutors said. The children were allowed to roam around the bus without seat belts on and climb over the seats as the bus was in motion, Rispoli said.

In addition to sexual assault, Thomasevich is charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, and six counts of cruelty and neglect of children.

Thomasevich was not a direct employee of the district, a spokesperson for the district said, and will not have any further contact with Kinnelon students. Before working as a school bus driver, Thomasevic previously worked for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, or MTA, in New York City, and drove a bus for senior citizens on Long Island.

A spokesman for the school bus company, First Student, said Thomasevich was removed from service. Bruno confirmed he has been suspended following several years of employment.

A pre-indictment conference is scheduled in the case for late March.

Katie Kausch may be reached at kkausch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KatieKausch. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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