Prince William County Police have charged Yolanda Larin, 50, of Manassas, Va., and Mirna Mendez, 42, of Woodbridge, Va., with child endangerment after an infant was discovered unconscious at an apparent unlicensed day-care center Thursday afternoon.
The investigation began as a response to a report of an unresponsive child in the 13200 block of Sapphire Ridge Place in Bristow, Va. Police identified the 3-month-old girl as Teagan Sample, who was taken to an area hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
At the same day-care operation, police found a total of 23 children, ages ranging from newborn to 4 years old. Five of the children, not including the deceased, were younger than 12 months. Larin and Mendez were the only adults present at the day-care center, and both were consequently charged with five counts of child endangerment for the children less than 12 months old.
Mohana Torres has sent her 3-year-old son to the day-care center since he was 9 months old but said she was under the impression that only 12 children were cared for there. She found the operation in a Craigslist ad.
The owner of the home and operator of the daycare left for Peru about a week ago to visit a sick father, Torres told News4's Julie Carey.
Friday's autopsy revealed no obvious signs of trauma, Carey reported. The Medical Examiner's Office is waiting for toxicology results.
Follow NBC Washington to get the latest news, events and entertainment anytime, anywhere: on air, online, and on Facebook // Twitter.
