A Massachusetts daycare owner is facing multiple charges after investigators say children as young as 1 were physically abused at her home-based daycare.
Karen Rezendes, 51, operated Oh Nana’s Daycare from her home on Cole Street in Kingston. The daycare has since closed and lost its license following investigations by law enforcement and state child welfare and licensing agencies.
Kingston police began investigating after receiving reports of possible abuse at the daycare. According to court records and KPTV, Rezendes’ husband provided authorities with a series of videos recorded inside the facility that allegedly showed multiple instances of abuse.
Oh Nana’s Daycare/CNN
Police said the allegations include slamming children to the ground and onto counters, hitting a child with kitchen utensils, shoving a child and locking a child in an attic. The children involved ranged in age from 1 to 4. Rezendes “hitted me and she threw me,” describing one incident that caused “bad blood.” According to WCVB, another child said Rezendes would “pow pow” him on the head.
Parents also described troubling changes in their children’s behavior. One parent told investigators that their child began having severe tantrums whenever they approached the daycare home.
Rezendes was arrested after Kingston police obtained a warrant on suspicion of assault and battery. Although police initially sought the public’s help locating her, her attorney said she was not fleeing and ultimately arrived at court on her own.
Rezendes, who faces multiple charges including felony assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, did not appear in person for a September 4 pretrial hearing. Her attorney said she is staying with friends while the case proceeds.
The investigation has involved the Kingston Police Department, the Children’s Advocacy Center at the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office, the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families and the Department of Early Education and Care.
Police are asking parents whose children attended Oh Nana’s Daycare and who have not yet spoken with investigators to come forward if they now suspect their child may have been abused.
[Featured images: Kingston PD/CBS]
