Toddler wanders away from Orange County day care, deputies say

Incident under investigation

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – An investigation is underway after a toddler wandered away from a local day care and was found walking near a road, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies said they were called to Creative Kids Connection on West Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway Wednesday evening by a concerned mother.

Sasha Diaz told deputies that she dropped her 18-month-old son off at the day care Wednesday morning and when she returned later to pick him up, employees were "all over the place" and said it was a crazy day, but did not mention any incidents involving her son.

WEB EXTRAS: Search Child Care Inspection Reports I DCF Inspection Guide

As Diaz was taking her son to her car, a man in a cream-colored SUV said he had seen her son walking alone near Route 192 about 10 minutes earlier, according to the report. The man said he and his wife stopped the toddler from going any closer to the road and brought him to Creative Kids Connection once they learned it was nearby, deputies said.

Diaz and the man went back to the day care to ask them about the incident. Employees there admitted that the boy had been found wandering by himself and told Diaz, "I don't know what to say," the report said.

[READ: Day care violations revealed]

"It should never happen, especially an 18-month-old and nobody was watching the door. It’s just no excuse," Diaz said.

Deputies said the toddler appeared happy, healthy and had no signs of injury when they arrived at the scene.

Inspection reports provided by the Department of Children and Families showed that the daycare has violations dating back to 2015. Earlier this year, records show the Creative Kids Connection failed to provide paperwork for staff background screenings and staff training, and records show employees failed to report a disease outbreak to the Orange County Health Department.

DCF is investigating Wednesday's incident.


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