WALLINGFORD, CT (WFSB) – A Wallingford home daycare owner, Brenda Fornal, 61, and her boyfriend, Grant Freer, 66, are facing multiple charges following an investigation into the abuse of nine children at her home-based daycare on Ridgetop Road.
The investigation began after a complaint was filed in late August with the Department of Children and Families, which was later referred to the Wallingford Police Department. Detectives obtained enough evidence to establish probable cause and issue warrants for their arrest.
According to police, the children were subjected to both verbal and physical abuse.
Fornal was arrested and charged with:
9 counts of risk of injury to a child
7 counts of third-degree assault
2 counts of second-degree threatening
Fourth-degree sexual assault
Voyeurism with malice
She was held on a $125,000 bond.
Freer, her boyfriend, was charged with conspiracy to commit risk of injury to a child and held on a $1,000 bond.
Local residents expressed outrage and concern over the arrests. Courtney Willard, a nearby resident and mother, said, “It’s just terrifying for me as a mother who works full-time and needs full-time care, that someone like this… something like this could happen.”
Willard also shared a personal experience, stating she once called Fornal inquiring about childcare for her 2-month-old son. “She was actually very rude and abrasive, and ended up hanging up on me,” she said.
The investigation is ongoing, and officials stress the importance of reporting any signs of abuse.
