Christopher Gregor, a New Jersey father on trial for the death of his son, Corey Micciolo, was reportedly a youth mentor before allegedly killing the 6-year-old.
According to the New York Post, Gregor was previously recognized as a former high school football standout at Monroe Township High School, a youth mentor, and in the district’s “Heroes and Cool Kids” mentorship initiative.
According to a 2010 Home News Tribune article, the program selected high school students deemed positive role models by school administrators to mentor middle schoolers.
Gregor is now accused of killing his son, who he learned about for the first time a little over a year before the child died.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Corey, who was just a few weeks shy of his seventh birthday, died in April 2021 from “blunt force injuries with cardiac and liver contusions with acute inflammation and sepsis,” according to an autopsy report.
Before Corey’s death, Gregor had numerous encounters with law enforcement across several states. Between August 2017 and April 2018, he accumulated over six criminal charges, including assault, robbery, and destruction of property, the Post reports.
Meanwhile, the trial continues at Ocean City’s Superior Court.
In September 2021, a forensic pathologist concluded that Corey’s death was a homicide, attributing it to enduring chronic abuse. This included blunt force injuries to his chest and abdomen, along with a laceration on his heart, a left pulmonary contusion, and liver lacerations and contusions.
Corey’s mother, Breanna Micciolo, previously told CrimeOnline that although there were numerous warning signs of abuse, she felt the Department of Protection and Permanency didn’t do enough to help, despite her making child abuse reports.
Micciolo began taking photos of her son after she suspected something was wrong. She said she tried to get the judge to allow her full custody of her son in April, but it didn’t happen in time.
Gregor has pleaded not guilty. Check back for updates.
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[Feature Photo: Corey Micciolo/Justice for Corey; Handout]
