Third Chesterbrook Academy Day Care Teacher Charged With Abusing Toddlers
MALVERN, Pa. (CBS) - A third teacher from Chesterbrook Academy is facing child abuse charges. East Whiteland Township police say Rebecca Maldoff has been charged with one count of endangering the welfare of children and one count of simple assault.
Last October, two other teachers at the day care were charged after the alleged abuse was caught on camera.
"Mainly rough treatment, some open-handed slaps, rough placements on the cots, pushing, things like that," East Whiteland Police Detective Sgt. Patricia Doyle said at the time.
Doyle believes the child abuse happened to eight toddlers in the same classroom inside Chesterbrook Academy on the 200 block of Atwater Driver.
Police launched an investigation on Aug. 29, 2019, one day after a former day care employee called the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services' Childline and Abuse Registry for the abuse of two children.
Police obtained video from classroom video monitors and discovered that on July 25 and Aug. 27 of last year, two teachers, Jessica Kochanski, of Havertown, and Alison Soria, of Jenkintown, were allegedly caught on camera in the same toddler room abusing multiple children between the ages of 16 to 22 months.
Both women were also charged with simple assault and endangering the welfare of children.
"It was hard to watch. I investigate child abuse cases very often," Doyle said. "If it weren't for the video, people wouldn't have known because they can't advocate for themselves."
In a statement, Chesterbrook Academy said, "We were appalled to hear of the alleged rough treatment of children by our former employees. We take employee misconduct very seriously, and we have zero tolerance for anyone who does not have children's best interests at heart."
