A daycare worker in central Arkansas was arrested Monday morning in a reported case of abuse involving two children she was responsible for, police said.
McKenzie Howell, 19, surrendered to authorities around 8 a.m. on two counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a minor, according to a news release from the Bryant Police Department.
Howell is accused of “yanking [children] up by the arms” and grabbing at least one child by the ankle, agency spokesman Sgt. Todd Crowson said.
Crowson added that Howell, who has since been fired from her job at the daycare, dropped one child she was trying to place into a chair.
“After investigators spoke with witnesses and reviewed the daycare security cameras, there was clearly enough evidence to obtain a warrant for Howell’s arrest,” the release states.
Howell was transported to the Saline County jail, where she remained as of shortly before 10 a.m., according to an online inmate roster.
In January, the state Department of Human Services launched a licensing investigation based off a complaint about the daycare’s staff-to-child ratio, spokeswoman Marcy Manley said at the time.
An internal report detailed that the Kids Academy location had fired a staff member for not being able to account for all of the children in her care. Two children reportedly ran out when a parent opened a door, and the assigned teacher did not realize a child was gone, officials said then.
The Police Department was set to release more information Monday afternoon regarding the child abuse investigation.