The couple who ran an allegedly illegal daycare center in Santa Maria da Feira, in the district of Aveiro, denies allegations of child abuse and carrying out illegal residential day care activities.
“It’s a lie. I never mistreated anyone. The parents came and the children didn’t even want to leave,” Helena Castro told Lusa, who attributes the mistreatment complaints to a revenge by a mother of a “very unstable” child, who was in charge of her and who was left to her. owe money.
The 68-year-old woman was accused along with her 74-year-old husband for allegedly carrying out the illegal activity of residential day care and for mistreatment of minors.
In a statement released today, the GNR states that the suspects owned an illegal nursery, attended by 13 children aged between 5 months and 6 years, considered at risk.
However, the woman claims that she was only responsible for six children, stating that when the GNR searched her residence, last Friday, she was taking care of more children “because of the strike” and “people who they’re going to do some cleaning for a few hours” and they asked him to stay like the kids.
“I don’t have room to have so many children, but then I love my activity”, said Helena Castro, who has been collecting since 1999 as a nanny, issuing receipts and making contributions to Social Security.
The woman also adds that the expired foodstuffs that were seized by the GNR were intended for her consumption and were in a fenced space.
He also clarified that the poison pills for rodents, which were also seized by the authorities, were intended to hunt mice in a land located at the back of his house, adding that they were stored in a cupboard “in a part of the kitchen where no children entered”.
“The children didn’t have access to any of these things,” said Helena Castro, adding that she has a clear conscience.
During the searches of the suspects’ residence, the GNR says it seized several types of food. expired food, an expired non-prescription medicinea bag with several pills of poison for rodents, a mousetrap and several tax documents.
In the statement, the GNR also mentions that the children “were removed from the house and handed over to their parents, being signaled to the Commission for the Protection of Children and Young People (CPCJ) of Santa Maria da Feira”.
