A Gainesville daycare worker was arrested, Wednesday, when a child wandered off from their daycare into a business on Estate Manor Drive, Nov. 19 at 8:35 p.m.
Prince William County Officers responded to a business located in the 13900 block of Estate Manor Drive in Gainesville to investigate a child neglect call.
“The caller reported to police that a child, later identified as a 3-year-old girl, walked into the business without a guardian,” said police spokesperson, Officer Nathan Probus. “After being unable to locate the child’s family, the caller contacted police.”
Further investigation by officers revealed that the child walked away from the Kiddie Academy of Gainesville located at 13980 Estate Manor Dr.
The child was not harmed and released to the custody of a family member.
Following the investigation, officers determined that the accused, identified as Nayoung Park, was the primary caretaker at the time of the incident and obtained a warrant for her arrest on November 29.
The accused turned herself into police at the Adult Detention Center on November 30 without incident.
Park of Centreville is the Director of Kiddie Academy, Gainesville. Police are charged her with felony child neglect.
She has been released on a $1,000 unsecured bond. Her court date is pending.
The Kiddie Academy Gainesville Management said what occurred was "an unfortunate incident where a child left the premises unsupervised during Date Night on Saturday, November 19.”
A spokesperson for the daycare and preschool said their director was placed on indefinite leave, and that the academy self-reported the incident to the state child care licensing body.
“Because the academy has a policy of open communication, every parent was notified by email about this incident. While the incident was unprecedented at the Kiddie Academy of Gainesville, we take the safety and care of all our students seriously, and we were relieved that the child was safely returned to the parents without harm.”
The Kiddie Academy representative said the director's tenure was predicated by all qualifications required by the state, and she exceeded the rigorous standards we keep for our staff.
“We will cooperate with the investigation following the charges filed against her," the spokesperson said. "The Kiddie Academy of Gainesville will continue to comply with all state and educational licensing standards and requirements, putting the safety of the children in our care at the forefront of all of our activities.”
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