Caretaker caught on nanny cam allegedly abusing special-needs child
Disturbing video shows a California caretaker appear to kick and physically abuse a 6-year-old boy with special needs, police said this week.
Vocational nurse Oscar Felix, 54, of Orange, was busted Tuesday on suspicion of felony child abuse after the boy’s mother reported what police described as “troubling” scenes, Santa Ana police spokesman Anthony Bertagna told the Washington Post.
“It’s unacceptable,” Bertagna said. “It’s concerning that when you have a child who cannot communicate and you, as a parent, entrust this professional to care for your child, this is not the type of action that you would expect.”
The mom decided to set up the camera after the boy showed increasingly aggressive behavior, KTLA reported.
The disturbing footage showed Felix pushing the child out of his lap, hitting him with a backpack, pinching him and kicking what appear to be small toys at his face as he lies on the floor.
Bertagna said Felix also “wasn’t giving any attention to the child,” who needs constant care due to CHARGE syndrome.
The genetic condition includes symptoms such as heart defects, vision problems, ear abnormalities and delayed growth, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Due to the syndrome, the child has a difficult time speaking and hearing and has a feeding tube, police said. He has been under full-time care.
Felix was arrested after making “incriminating statements,” though Bertagna said the district attorney will decide what, if any, charges would be filed, according to the Washington Post.
He started working as the boy’s nurse in August through a health care company called Maxim Healthcare Services, Bertagna said.
The company has fired him, KTLA reported.
“It got me so mad. I didn’t know what to do because I never know what to do in these cases,” the mom told KABC. She said the nurse came to their home five days a week.
“He can’t hear so he’s not able to communicate. He’s a stubborn baby and he has trouble breathing. He doesn’t eat by himself, he eats through a machine,” she said.
Bertagna said “the way you gotta look at it is, if this was your child, this is a child that cannot communicate, cannot share what is going on.”
“This individual has been a nurse for 14 years, I’m told, so how many people does he work for?” Bertagna added.
Maxim Healthcare Services notified the state board of nursing about the alleged abuse.
“The care and safety of our patients is our highest priority. Immediately upon learning of this incident we suspended the employee and initiated an investigation,” Maxim said in a statement to KTLA.
“As a result we have terminated the employee and notified the California Board of Nursing,” the statement read. “We have fully cooperated with the Santa Ana Police Department in their investigation thus far and will continue to lend our full cooperation.”
According to the state Department of Consumer Affairs, Felix has been licensed as a vocational nurse since 2005 and is certified in intravenous therapy. His license expires in December 2019.