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With a Halloween mask, daycare workers in the USA scared children (symbol image)
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YAY Images / IMAGO
A woman with a Halloween mask frightens small children in the daycare center and yells at them while the children scream and cry in fear and panic: After videos of such scenes went viral and caused horror, four daycare workers in the US state have to Mississippi on three counts of child abuse.
A fifth educator is accused, among other things, of concealing the incidents, according to Monroe County Sheriff Kevin Crook.
Several videos that appeared on social networks in early October show how severely the children, some of whom were very young, were intimidated in a daycare center in Hamilton, in northeast Mississippi.
The recordings are said to have been made in September and October.
Children were scared with horror mask
One sequence shows a daycare worker wearing a Halloween mask reminiscent of the horror film »Scream«.
Sometimes she places herself close to the faces of children, yells at them, touches them and scolds them for “not behaving well” or “not cleaning them up”.
Another employee gives instructions to the woman with the mask and points to children who have behaved "well" or "badly".
The footage shows several children screaming and crying loudly and in despair.
One is calling for its mother.
Sheriff Crook said prosecutors had spoken to parents of the children involved about the case this week.
A pair of parents have officially raised allegations of child abuse.
According to the information, a judge issued arrest warrants for the accused daycare workers, and bail amounts were also set for them.
As reported by broadcaster CNN and ABC Action News, the suspects were arrested shortly thereafter on Wednesday.
The sheriff said they are now investigating whether charges will be filed against them and the case will go to court.
Scary Attack was supposed to teach obedience
The four women accused of child abuse are between the ages of 21 and 28.
It was not announced who played which role in the mask attack.
According to CNN, the 25-year-old daycare worker wrote on Facebook that she was the one behind the camera.
She recorded a video as evidence to send to parents so they would know what was happening to their children.
All five suspected women lived in the area, Crook said.
It can be assumed that with the mask attack they wanted to ensure that the children “behave better”.
"Apparently the daycare workers wanted to scare the kids into doing what they were told," the sheriff said.
It's a shame it all happened.
He found watching the videos disturbing.
Parents of affected children were downright »shocked«.
Katelyn Johnson told ABC that she was very angry.
The sight of her child in the video "broke her heart".
Her two-year-old son is still showing symptoms of trauma and has not slept through the night since the incident.
The behavior of the women is absolutely unacceptable.
The owner of the day care center does not have to answer for herself.
She had sharply condemned the behavior of her employees as soon as she found out about the videos and immediately fired at least four of the women involved.
According to her own statements, she had known nothing of the procedure.
fok/AP