Woman running illegal day care abused child with ‘cruel confinement,’ Kentucky cops say

A woman who allegedly ran illegal day care is also accused of intentionally abusing a child and hiding the evidence, Kentucky authorities say.

The Nelson County Sheriff’s Office said Katelyn Rogers, 27, operated the illegal child care facility by coercing and manipulating an employee to work without pay. Rogers used intimidation tactics in her scheme, authorities said.

She also intimidated the same worker to mislead investigators about “the number of children in their care and other critical details of the operation,” according to the sheriff.

Additionally, Rogers faces abuse accusations, as authorities say she intentionally abused a child through “torture, cruel confinement or other forms or cruel punishment.”

As authorities investigated the day care, Rogers was found to have altered video footage and deleted text messages to hide evidence, the sheriff said.

The actions took place from February 2024 to May 2024 and led to Rogers being indicted by the Nelson County Grand Jury, according to a Nov. 25 news release.

Rogers, of Bloomfield, was charged Nov. 20 with human trafficking-forced labor, criminal abuse, tampering with physical evidence and tampering with a witness, court records show.

Records show she posted a $30,000 bond Nov. 21 and is due in court again Dec. 5.

Nelson County is about a 45-mile drive southeast from Louisville.

This story was originally published November 26, 2024 at 8:59 AM with the headline "Woman running illegal day care abused child with ‘cruel confinement,’ Kentucky cops say."