MIDDLEBURG, Fla. -- A Clay County mother says a worker at a YMCA after school program, taped her son's mouth shut using duct tape to keep her son from talking.
Jacque Moreno picked up her six-year old son from Rideout Elementary from an after-school program operated by the YMCA on Monday afternoon. She noticed that her son's lips were bleeding.
"He stated to me that his lips were bleeding due to the fact that the teacher from the YMCA had put duct tape over his lip," said Moreno.
Moreno says her son told her the teacher did it because he was talking too much.
"I was very upset, I left the facility upset and went to talk to the director and you don't ever want something like that to happen to your child. It was very upsetting, nerve wracking, when you find your child like that. You are in disbelief," Moreno said.
Moreno filed a complaint with the Clay County Sheriff's Office after talking to the YMCA.
The YMCA later issued a statement:
"The safety and security of children in our care is our highest priority. Immediately after this incident was brought to our attention, we launched an internal investigation and based on our findings, we have terminated the employee."
"I was relieved by that," said Moreno. "I don't believe that somebody who would do that to a child, to be even working with any type of children."
Moreno, a single mom, says her son doesn't want to return to the YMCA after school program, so she is trying to make other arrangements at this time and her employer is letting her pick up her children right after school.
The Clay County Sheriff's Office and the Department of Children and Families were investigating this case on Wednesday. Moreno says DCF workers interviewed her son in the morning and she said they were planning to talk to other children as well.
DCF spokesman John Harrell says DCF licenses these after school programs. He says any physical punishment at these facilities is inappropriate. He says any charges in this case would be up to law enforcement, and they will share their findings with police.
