Delaware day care operator put out of business for drug trafficking: police

news

by Katherine Donlevy

A Delaware day care owner and his servant were arrested for allegedly running a drug operation from their home playschool, authorities announced Thursday.

Jessica Cooper, 29, and Cameron Christmas, 33, were taken into custody on a number of drug and firearms charges after drug detectives were dispatched to Little Peoples LFCC2 just after midday on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the day care side of their business remained open. Day.

Inside the disguised drug room, officers found 93 grams of cocaine, 26 grams of crack, 302 bags of heroin, two handguns and more than $32,000.

“At the time the search warrant was served, four children were attending day care,” the Dover Police Department said.

Cooper and Christmas, who are listed as the owners of the daycare, are both charged with drug possession, drug possession with intent to deliver, possession of a firearm or ammunition by a prohibited person, child endangerment, conspiracy and possession of drug paraphernalia. There is.

Christmas was being held with cash bail set at more than $93,000. Cooper was being held on a $49,700 secured bond.

Records show the two have been colluding for several years and have had run-ins with the law in the past.

According to court records, Cooper was arrested in 2021 on a warrant for failure to appear on a charge of leaving the scene of an accident, and Christmas was held on $450 bail. He was later issued another warrant for failure to appear in court.

Christmas has been arrested twice on drug charges, most recently in 2022, when he pleaded guilty and was ordered to pay fines and court costs.

According to court records, he violated a zero-tolerance drug policy, failed to attend meetings or hearings, and failed to complete homework after being admitted to a diversion program for a 2018 drug arrest.

Meanwhile, Cooper was charged with hindering prosecution in 2020, but the charges were later dropped.

It’s unclear what led to the daycare’s raid, but Christmas has multiple drug arrests on its rap sheet, and Little People’s LFCC 2 found itself in the mud after a September inspection.

The school is advertised on its childcare webpage as a family childcare that “promotes the development of social skills in a safe and caring environment”, but does not provide adequate communication with parents, outdoor areas or storage of children’s files. was accused of not complying with regulations.

Cooper is listed as the registered agent of Little Peoples LFCC 2 and co-owner of the residential property. Her partner, who was also not arrested, is her registered agent.

Our facility caters to children between the ages of 1 and 12.

Little People’s LFCC 2 received several slaps on the wrist during the September 2023 inspection and found that there was poor communication with parents, gates did not latch properly, and child files were not properly latched. Failure to keep things tidy was pointed out as a nonconformity.

Inspectors found that two children needed blood lead screening results and one needed a medical exam and immunization records.

with post wire