RICHMOND, TX — Video shows two toddlers being abused in a 24-Hour Fitness daycare facility back in December while their father was utilizing the gym.
A 24 Hour Fitness in Richmond, Texas fired the two employees after a video surfaced on Snapchat showing them slapping an abusing two twin 18-months-old toddlers.
Tyler and Arianna Davis—the parents of the children—were informed about the incident days later. Their daughters suffered abuse in the 24-Hour Fitness daycare center while Tyler was working out nearby.
In the video above, a woman is seen cradling one of the girls and shaking her, flailing the child’s body. Then, both girls are spun in circles until they are dizzy enough to fall, while the women laughed at them.
“This one’s walking over and this one is just gonna slap her on the back of her head and make her fall down,” Arianna said as she points to her computer screen displaying the footage.
A 24 Hour Fitness spokesperson released the following statement:
“At 24 Hour Fitness, we take matters of this nature seriously. Our members and team members’ safety and security are top priorities for us, and our employee training includes protocols for safeguarding member and team member safety. Once we learned about the incident that took place in the Kids Club of our club located at 5270 West Grand Parkway South, Richmond, Texas, we took immediate action. We informed the parents of the child about the incident, as well as local law enforcement. The employees involved in the incident are no longer with the company.”
The Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office has started an investigation and plans to hand it over to the district attorney’s office.
“I think the two women that are involved need to be prosecuted and put in jail just due to their age at the time,” said Tyler. “These people are possibly still out there doing this to other people’s kids.”