A retired elementary school teacher who moonlights as a Santa Claus actor was arrested on child pornography charges in New Jersey on Friday.

Mark Paulino, 64, of Hamilton Township, was cuffed after a swift two-day investigation, the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office told NJ.com.

A criminal complaint obtained by the outlet alleged that Paulino was flagged after he filmed a child in a bedroom and emailed the recording to someone else.

Authorities seized multiple pieces of evidence from his home before taking him into custody on Friday, officials told the outlet.

On his “Santa Mark” website, Paulino wrote that he was “pursuing [his] lifelong wish to be Santa Claus” after he retired from teaching in the township in 2021.

Before his stint as a special educator, Paulino said that he “began working with children” in 1984 while employed as a substitute teacher with a side gig as a lifeguard and swimming instructor.

Paulino’s wife, to whom he’s been married for more than two decades, is also a teacher, though it’s not clear if they worked at the same school. The couple share two sons, according to his website.

The alleged predator’s website includes a “Text Santa” feature that directs users to FaceTime.

During his in-person appearances as Saint Nick, Paulino would regale children with gifts or candy, lead sing-alongs, tell Christmas stories, and receive gift lists, according to his website. Traditionally, children share what gifts they want for the holidays while sitting on their respective Santa actor’s lap.

Paulino was charged with possession and distribution of child sexual abuse materials, endangering the welfare of a child, abandonment, cruelty and neglect, and a fourth-degree count of child abuse, according to court documents obtained by the outlet.

He is scheduled to appear at Mercer County Superior Court on Tuesday.

Paulino isn’t the only Santa who’s made the police’s naughty list.

In 2024, one North Carolina man who had a years-long history as the community’s resident Santa Claus was arrested on 13 counts of child abuse. Authorities additionally suspected that he was also tied to a child trafficking ring.

In 2019, a Salvation Army Santa was busted on a prostitution warrant while panhandling for the charity in upstate New York.