Records: Day care at center of abuse allegations had prior issues

Three months after the operator of a Westport day care fired a teacher for allegedly abusing infants, the business’ Fairfield location terminated an employee for pulling a child’s hair and “being rough” with others, according to a Hearst Connecticut Media review of state inspection reports.

The business’ Norwalk location was also cited by the state for failing to provide first aid or notify a child’s parents of a head injury until they were called because the child began vomiting, according to an inspection report. In another instance, an employee was fired after an inspector observed three infants sleeping in unsafe equipment, the records show.

The owner of Bright Beginnings Early Childhood Program and three employees were arrested recently after Westport police said an investigation in June determined a lead teacher there moved the children in an “aggressive manner,” kicked a ball at the babies and left some of them crying for extended periods of time.

The state Department of Children and Families investigator said the employee, Suzette Virgo, “admitted to flicking the children,” who were between 5 and 12 months old, “on the side of their head with her fingers as a form of punishment and to scare them,” the warrant stated. Virgo later told police that she never hit the children and made the flicking sound as a way of alerting them, the warrant stated.

The DCF investigator also learned Virgo called the children “demeaning names” like “chunky monkey” and “fat f—,” according to the arrest warrant.

Other employees at Bright Beginnings said they saw Virgo force-feed bottles to some of the children. A mother told investigators her children’s clothing was soiled two to three times a week, the warrant stated.

The investigation was prompted by a complaint from a former employee to DCF. The business has four locations — in Westport, Fairfield, Stamford and Norwalk, according to its website.

The owner, Ridhita Gupta, was charged with failure to report child abuse in connection with the Westport investigation.

No one answered the door at Gupta’s Darien home on Wednesday. A message left with her lawyer was not returned.

The day cares were founded in Stamford in 2011, according to the business’ website.

The business’ Westport location rents space from the United Methodist Church of Westport and Weston.

A post on the church’s website from June 2020 announced the “brand new, ultra-modern facility.”

The pastor, Rev. Heather Sinclair, said she learned of the investigation Tuesday via media reports and described the church’s relationship with the business as commercial.

“We’re certainly saddened to hear of the allegations,” Sinclair said in an interview on Wednesday. “Above all, our prayers are just that the matter will be addressed thoroughly and there will be a resolution for the healing and care of all of the families.”

She said the church has not yet decided whether to reevaluate its relationship with the business.

“I think we’ll be seeing what any investigation brings,” she said. “We certainly don’t have any concrete thoughts on that at this time.”

In addition to the alleged abuse investigated after the June incident, an inspection at the Westport facility last December found that a child was left alone unsupervised in a classroom, which prompted disciplinary action and retraining.

The employee in that incident was not named in the report. However, Virgo was suspended for three days last December “for lack of supervision of a child,” according to the arrest warrant related to the June incident.

According to state records, the Fairfield hairpulling incident prompted a Sept. 22 inspection from the state Office of Early Childhood, which licenses child care centers.

“Operator failed to use appropriate child behavior management techniques when teacher was observed to pull hair of one child and be rough with other children in her classroom,” the inspection report, which is available online, reads.

A corrective action plan from the same date indicates the employee was fired and other staff retrained.

A follow-up inspection in October found zero violations at the Fairfield location.

At the Norwalk location, an employee was fired after an unannounced inspection in July 2020 found the business in violation of rules calling for infants under 12 months of age to sleep in free-standing cribs — two were in bouncers and one was in a swing, according to the report.

The Norwalk location also self-reported an incident in May where staff failed to seek first aid for a child who fell and struck her head, did not have the injury evaluated, and did not inform parents of the head injury until the child began vomiting and parents were called to pick her up, according to an inspection report.

The report also said, “there was only one staff in the room with seven toddlers when a toddler fell. Staff were not actively supervising at the time of the incident.” The document did not say whether the head injury and the fall were the result of the same incident.

That investigation was closed, according to documents available online, after the business filed a corrective action plan indicating staff were retrained.

It’s unclear whether the business’ other locations were investigated by DCF or police.

A DCF spokesperson declined to comment on Bright Beginnings specifically Wednesday, citing confidentiality laws, but said if the agency receives notice of allegations it believes are of a criminal nature, it will work with police and the Office of Early Childhood to investigate.

“This is a reminder to family members, friends, co-workers, and concerned citizens that if they are of the belief that a child has been harmed or are concerned about the manner a child is being treated, contact the child abuse and neglect care line at 1-800842-2288,” Ken Mysogland, the agency’s bureau chief for external affairs, said.