A woman in South Carolina has been accused of operating an illegal day care from her apartment and allegedly leaving eight children alone inside when the residence caught on fire.
The North Charleston Police Department said in a news release that Janaina Pio Ferreira was taken into custody on Thursday, March 12, and charged with eight counts of unlawful conduct toward a child.
On March 12 around 2:30 p.m., officers and firefighters responded to reports of a structure fire at the Arbor Square Apartments in North Charleston.
“When emergency crews arrived, they discovered eight juveniles inside the apartment without adult supervision,” the release read. “Officers were told the fire suppression system put out the fire before firefighters arrived. No injuries were reported.”
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Soon after authorities reported to the scene, Ferreira, 29, arrived back at her home “with several additional children.” Authorities quickly identified her as the resident of the apartment where the fire started.
Officers said that they determined Ferreira had been “operating an illegal day care from the apartment” and they believed she was responsible for caring for the children. However, police said that she left the children unattended inside the residence at the time the fire began.
Ferreira was eventually taken into custody and was booked on eight counts of unlawful conduct toward a child, one charge for each child allegedly left inside the apartment during the fire, according to the news release.
Police have not yet shared the ages of the children who were left in the home and it’s not currently clear how long the children were left alone for, but authorities contacted the children’s parents regarding the incident.
“The North Charleston Fire Department conducted their investigation and concluded that the fire was due to a faulty aftermarket knob to the stove,” the release said. “NCPD and NCFD are currently collaborating on an ongoing investigation.”
As investigators looked into the case, they came to believe that one of the children left a backpack on top of the stove and it caught on fire, according to WCIV.
“Kids, sometimes play with fire, sometimes they play with stoves, sometimes they turn on stoves,” NCFD Chief Deputy Christian Rainey told the station about the incident. “We could have been having a totally different talk today — a totally different story.”
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Ferreira is currently being held on $200,000 bond, with $25,000 for each charge. She is scheduled to appear in court for her first hearing on May 1, according to Law & Crime.
It is not currently clear if Ferreira has entered a plea or retained legal representation. The North Charleston Police Department did not have any additional updates to share when contacted by Us about the incident.
Following the incident, fellow childcare center owner Tiffani Lockwood said she didn’t understand how a parent could choose to send their children to illegally operated facilities instead of official ones.
“You’re really playing Russian roulette with your kids,” she told WCIV.
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