@theartjunkie/TikTOk
November 2, 2021, 8:03 am*
A nanny in North Carolina was arrested after security camera footage caught her force-feeding a toddler in her care — footage the parents later posted to social media as a warning to others.
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Lauren Rowe was charged with misdemeanor child abuse last month after Max and Laura Oglesby checked in on their security feed and saw what she was doing to their son.
In the nearly three-minute clip shared to TikTok, Rowe pulls the toddler’s arms behind his back as he screams, before shoving food in his mouth with her hand, which she then holds over his mouth.
“You can eat it or not,” she says.
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The child continues to struggle and scream but Rowe does not remove her hand or let go over his arms for some time. When she finally does, she continues arguing with the crying toddler for the remainder of the video.
“We can sit here all night until you eat that,” she tells him.
The parents were shocked at what happened, insisting they vetted Rowe thoroughly before hiring her to look after their young children.
“She was recommended to my wife on a Facebook group for New Bern moms,” Max said. “She’s got a check on freaking care.com. I feel like we took the right steps.”
Uncertain what will come of the charges against Rowe, the Oglesbys decided to share the video to warn others about her, as well as remind people that just because someone looks good on paper doesn’t mean you actually know what they’re getting up to when they look after your children.
And strangers watching the footage on TikTok got the message.
“This is why I don’t ever trust anyone with my kids,” wrote @markoloma. “I’d be in jail.”
“That could have easily ended in him choking to death,” @mytwoclouds pointed out.
Another suggested the boy “may have suffered psychological damage from this incident.”
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The New Bern police are reportedly looking through past weeks of footage while Rowe was looking after the children to see if there were any additional incidents.
“We are heartbroken for our son and furious that this happened,” reads a Facebook post from Max. “We are taking appropriate actions upon this matter and will not stand for this happening to our baby or anyone else’s babies.”
*First Published: November 2, 2021, 7:18 am
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