DETROIT (WXYZ) — The Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential is suspending the licenses of 4K Learning Center Detroit and 4K Learning Center Southgate with the intent to revoke them.
According to an order from the state of Michigan, on Oct. 24, the bureau received a complaint that included three videos that reportedly show the owner of the centers, Isatou Whitfield, in a van, hitting, kicking, strangling and screaming at a child.
The document then goes on to detail the horrendous abuse including Whitfield allegedly stomping on a child curled into a ball, yelling "You like that (redacted), do you like that?"
Whitfield allegedly strangled the 12- or 13-year-old child screaming, "Do you know I will kill your (redacted)?" while the child screams.
The document says the videos were taken three years ago and two child care staff members were also in the van.
It says that one of them is the child's mother, and the child is autistic. 7 News Detroit attempted to reach out to Whitfield but was unable to reach her.
Our team did speak with Asia Boynton, mother to 4-year-old CJ, who told us that her son was abused by 4K Learning Center Southgate workers in May.
"I walked in and saw it. He was in the back of the classroom. He had tables around him, so nobody else would see, and he was strapped to the table leg." Boynton said. "When he heard my voice, he jumped up and tried to run to me, but he couldn't."
Boynton said that CJ is autistic, and multiple times when she or her boyfriend would come to pick him up, they would find him restrained to chairs or tethered to desks.
"So the next morning, I called the owner and she was telling me 'I would never. Would never do that to your child, especially a kid with special needs,'" Boynton said.
She said she also witnessed workers aggressively grabbing children. There were cameras, but every time she asked to see them, she was brushed aside.
"I feel like if you guys have cameras, I should be able to see the video," Boynton said.
A single mom with a job as a medical assistant, Boynton, like many other parents, said she feels forced to put her faith into day care centers while she works.
She filed a police report with Southgate police and put CJ into a different therapy center, which she said he love. But he still flinches and acts nervous some days.
"I still think about it when I drop him off every day," Boynton said. "Personally and honestly, I think somebody needs to be in jail."
State officials say the investigation into Whitfield's child care centers continues.
