A Georgia woman is facing multiple charges and lost her job at a local day care center after video surveillance showed her “ongoing” pattern of abusing infants under her supervision, local police said.
Nicole Cabrera, 21, of Collins, Georgia, was arrested last week and charged with nine felony counts of first-degree cruelty to children and one count of misdemeanor battery, court records obtained by local media outlets show.
Cabrera was employed by Step by Step Childcare & Learning Center in Lyons, Georgia, when the abuse occurred, Lyons Police Chief Wesley Walker told outlet Southeast Georgia Today. The day care owner confirmed to local media that Cabrera was an infant teacher at the Lyons facility before she was fired.
Former day care employee Nicole Cabrera, 21, is accused of abusing at least nine infants in her care, according to authorities in Georgia.
Toombs County Sheriff’s Office
Newsweek reached out via email and Facebook on Tuesday night to the Lyons Police Department (LPD) and Step by Step for comment. It was unclear at the time of publication whether Cabrera had an attorney who could speak on her behalf.
Walker said Cabrera was terminated from her position at the day care on November 28, around the time that LPD began investigating a parent’s allegations of abuse, according to local station WTGS. It was unclear whether Cabrera was fired before or after the police investigation ensued.
A representative for Step by Step told the station the decision to fire Cabrera came after staff received parental complaints of scratches and marks on their babies. The complaints prompted employees to review the facility’s surveillance footage, which led to charges being filed against Cabrera, WTGS reports.
Walker said that most of the injuries would be classified as “moderate.” It was unclear if any of the nine babies had to be hospitalized.
“We started investigating this case in November and we’ve identified nine victims who are all under the age of 1 year,” Walker told local media. “The injuries included scratches, abrasions, and bumps on their heads.”
In one instance, a parent told police that her daughter went to day care and when she picked her up one day in late November, her daughter had numerous scratches on her head and stomach, according to the LPD incident report.
The parent told LPD that she was able to view the facility’s footage and saw her daughter’s teacher, Cabrera, being rough with the infant. An LPD officer said in the report that he watched some of the video and witnessed Cabrera pick up the girl and aggressively put her in a small portable swing, causing the child to hit her head on the top of the seat.
Briana Lopez, mom of one of the other harmed infants, told WJCL 22 that she noticed her daughter had injuries to the left side of her ear and the back of her head that weren’t there before the baby was dropped off at day care. She was also able to view footage of the incident.
“I saw how she slammed my child over and over,” Lopez said.
Another parent, Samantha Adams, told WJCL 22 that investigators believe her young son was abused as many as four times in one day.
“She just picks him up, slams him back down,” Adams said. “Then he tries to roll over again, crying as hard as he can, and then she picks him up again and flips him … and slams him back down again.”
Cabrera was released from the Toombs County Detention Center after posting $25,000 bond. Walker said the investigation is ongoing and that additional charges are expected.
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