ODESSA, Fla. — The co-owner of a daycare in Odessa was accused of child abuse after she tried to forcefully make a child take a nap, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said in a news release on Monday.
Rong Liu, 51, is an owner and the director of Children's Land of Imagination Academy and she physically abused a child under her care on June 20, deputies say.
Liu reportedly used force to push and pull the head and neck of a child with her hand as she tried to put the child down for a nap. She was also seen putting both of her legs across the top of the child's body to try and hold down the child, authorities say.
Law enforcement says the child was crying and swinging their legs throughout the incident.
"It is sickening to hear that the person responsible for dozens of children at daycare would inflict this type of punishment on the vulnerable persons in her care," Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement. "Unfortunately, throughout our investigation, we have learned that she is known to treat her students harshly and roughly. Thanks to the hard work, and the persistent efforts by our Special Victims Investigators, they were able to find out the truth behind the accusations reported to us."
After completing an investigation, deputies say they arrested Liu on Friday and charged her with child abuse. She was released the next day on a $2,000 bond.
The investigation remains ongoing, the sheriff's office says.