Blaine daycare workers charged in child abuse investigation

BLAINE, Minn. — Two women in their twenties are accused of abusing multiple infants at a north metro daycare.

The Blaine Police Department says it received a report of potential child abuse from the Children's Hospital in Minneapolis last Tuesday. The hospital reported a 5-month-old child had unexplained bruising and they believed the abuse occurred at Small World Daycare Center in Blaine.

When investigators contacted the daycare, police say the care providers initially blamed an infant swing for the bruising.

After reviewing surveillance footage from the daycare, police arrested two caretakers: A 22-year-old woman from Coon Rapids and a 24-year-old woman from Andover. The women were each charged on Friday with three counts of malicious punishment of a child and one count of third-degree assault. Two of those charges are felonies.

Police say that while looking at the footage, two other victims of abuse were identified.

One infant suffered bruising in nine different areas and another infant was found to have a leg fracture that may have occurred two weeks prior, according to medical reports.

Blaine police say other families with children at the daycare have been advised to have their children evaluated and to contact investigators if they notice any unexplainable injuries on their child.

One of the women allegedly admitted to her behavior and that it was wrong, charges say. The other said she had been too rough and her behavior could have caused the first child's bruising.

The woman from Coon Rapids is scheduled to appear in court next on Aug. 12. The other woman's next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 19.