A 62-year-old man is facing charges in connection to the death of a toddler left in an extremely hot vehicle for hours outside an Omaha, Nebraska, day care.
Ryan Williams, a driver for Kidz of the Future II Childcare Center, was charged with child abuse neglect resulting in death after being accused of leaving a 1-year-old child inside the van, KETV reported.
Omaha police said the child, identified as Ra’Miyah Worthington, was inside the van for about six hours on Aug. 21, per the report. When authorities arrived at the scene, Worthington was unresponsive.
She was transported to a local hospital and was pronounced dead. Court records revealed that her body temperature was 109 degrees, the outlet reported.
Worthington and her siblings were picked up by Williams that morning, according to WOWT. Both of them were unloaded upon arrival, while the toddler remained inside the car.
Speaking with police, Williams said that nine children were in the van that day. When they got to the day care, and as he was taking them out of the vehicle, one child did not want to go inside the center, the news station reported, citing an affidavit.
Another employee came outside to assist with the boy, and Williams closed the door, allegedly failing to double-check if all the children were out, the report said. When he was ready to do his afternoon run, he discovered Worthington in the back and called law enforcement.
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The incident is under investigation, and the state Department of Health and Human Services announced an emergency order to “temporarily” close the day care “until further investigations can take place,” WOWT reported.
Worthington’s loved ones gathered in front of the day care center to protest on Tuesday, calling for accountability.
“My baby did not come home. Her siblings did,” her mother, Sina Johnson, told KETV. “She didn’t. How did y’all forget about her? Y’all picked all of ’em up, took ’em off the van. How did y’all forget my baby?”
In addition, the family created a fundraiser seeking donations to cover the funeral and expenses for Worthington’s other siblings. It has raised nearly $30,000, surpassing its original goal.
