Lizandra Cosme, 32, burned five children with a hot glue gun while a co-worker, Susana Gonzalez, 27, watched and laughed.
Cosme got arrested on Sunday and faces five felony counts of aggravated battery to a child, police said. Gonzalez was charged with five misdemeanor counts of causing the circumstances of endangering a child.
According to ABC7 Chicago, the video footage shows Cosme putting the hot glue on the hands and arms of the children. Gonzalez is seen laughing while the kids frown in pain.
“Each of the child victims winced and some whined at the hot glue gun application,” a prosecutor said, according to ABC7. Cosme was denied bail at the hearing on Monday.
Cosme’s defense attorney said her actions were not malicious. She has been working with children for 12 years, with her attorney saying, she “screwed up.”
The hot glue gun was going to be used for a Christmas project. The two women were in charge of 16 children while the incident happened.
According to its website, the Children’s Learning Place is a licensed child-care facility that serves children between 6 weeks and 6 years of age. They have four locations in Chicago.
A spokeswoman for the daycare, Lissa Druss Christman, said the two workers were “terminated” immediately after the incident. “The well-being of our students is paramount,” she said.
The Department of Children and Family Services said it is investigating the incident and did not provide further details.
This article was inspired by CBS // Cops: Chicago day care workers charged after five toddlers burned with hot glue gun