Police On Hunt For Person Who Threw Rock At School Full Of Children, Splitting Open Little Girl’s Skull

New Jersey authorities are searching for the person who allegedly hurled a baseball-sized rock through a school bus window, fracturing an 8-year-old girl’s skull.

Teaneck Mayor Mark Schwartz and Deputy Mayor Elie Y. Katz are offering a $5,000 reward from their personal funds for information leading to an arrest, according to NJ.com. The incident took place Wednesday shortly following 2 p.m. as the bus exited the New Jersey Turnpike at Teaneck Road.

The bus was transporting third-graders from Yeshivat Noam in Paramus back from a field trip to Liberty Science Center. (RELATED: Electric School Bus Bursts Into Flames In LA)

The victim, a Bergenfield resident, had surgery Thursday and was in stable condition Friday, NJ.com reported. Schwartz said there is currently no indication the attack was a bias crime but noted officials are “treading carefully” because the bus carried visibly Jewish children.

Rock thrown at school bus on N.J. Turnpike seriously injures 8-year-old, state police say https://t.co/zDIKh51iko

— njdotcom (@njdotcom) January 9, 2026

“Right now, we’re just really trying to find leads. If we find out who the person is, we’ll find out the motive,” Schwartz said.

School leaders issued a statement obtained by CBS New York. “We do not know the motive behind the incident, and it would be premature to draw conclusions. There were no visible markings on the bus identifying it as a Jewish school bus,” they said.

Parent Avram Zamist said his 9-year-old daughter was aboard the bus but escaped injury.

“She’s OK, you know. She’s very upset. She’s shook, but she’s physically OK,” Zamist said. “But a friend of hers is not OK.”

“We hope it wasn’t intentional, but if it was, it’s the worst feeling in the world to think that someone would put a child’s life or children’s lives in danger,” he added.

The school has called up its mental health personnel to support students and families, Head of School at Yashivat Noam Rabbi Chaim Hagler said, according to The Lakewood Scoop. New Jersey State Police are leading the investigation.