A former Blairstown resident has been charged with several counts of sexual assault and
endangerment of two victims, ages 6 and 7, in incidents that allegedly took place in Blairstown in 2020 and 2021.
The Warren County Prosecutor’s Office has charged Andrew L. Lissitz, 51, currently a resident of East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, with two counts of sexual assault and one count of endangering the welfare of a child in connection with the 6-year-old after the child reported the alleged incident in July of 2021.
In the second case involving the 7-year-old child, Lissitz was charged with one count of
aggravated sexual assault, three counts of sexual assault and one count of endangering the
welfare of a child, who reported the incident in September of 2021.
Lissitz faces up to 20 years in prison with a minimum of 10 years with no early release on the aggravated sexual assault charge, a first-degree offense.
During a joint investigation between the prosecutor’s office and the Blairstown Police
Department, it was determined that Lissitz had access to the 6-year-old victim on at least two occasions, and access to the 7-year-old on at least one occasion, Warren County Prosecutor James Pfeiffer said.
According to published reports, Lissitz’s attorney, Scott Wilhelm, said the fact that prosecutors waited three years to charge in one case and two years in the second case shows that they had “serious doubts” about Lissitz’s guilt.
Pfeiffer said that the criminal investigation is continuing and anyone with information can call the Prosecutor’s Office Special Victim’s Unit at 908-475-6040 or 908-475-6060.
Lissitz is currently lodged at the Warren County Jail pending his first court appearance, Pfeiffer said.
Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer
Joe was lured out of retirement by the opportunity to be a part of the Ridge View Echo. During a decades-long career in publishing and journalism, he has covered government on many levels from local school boards to the United States Supreme Court.
Along the way, Joe has worked at American Lawyer Magazine, The National Law Journal and The Record among other publications, and as the Press Officer of Columbia Law School. His work has been recognized with several first place awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the New Jersey Press Association.
Being part of the Ridge View Echo brings Joe back to his roots and the kind of news coverage he loves: Telling the stories of people and local communities as well as keeping an eye on how their money is spent by their government officials.
Joe lives in Blairstown with his wife Rose, the founder of Quilting for a Cause, and their two wiener dogs. He is an artist in his spare time.
