The owner of a daycare in Dunellen, New Jersey, is facing criminal charges after authorities say she gave two young children a sleep supplement without their parents' permission. The case has unsettled families in the small Middlesex County borough, where the daycare had operated as a fixture for years, and has prompted a criminal investigation into what happened inside its doors.
The business at the center of the case is Precious Gifts Childcare in Dunellen. On what would normally be a busy weekday, there was no activity at the site, the doors quiet and the daycare shut down as word of the charges spread. For parents who had trusted the facility with their children, the sudden closure and the allegations came as a jolt.
According to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office, the daycare's owner has been identified as 57-year-old Cheryl Ambicki. She has been charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a charge that reflects the number of children prosecutors say were affected by her actions at the facility.
The heart of the allegation involves what the children were given. Prosecutors say Ambicki gave melatonin to a two-year-old and a four-year-old without first obtaining their parents' consent. Melatonin is widely available over the counter as a sleep supplement, but giving it to young children without a parent's knowledge or permission is what put Ambicki in the sights of investigators.
The case moved quickly once it surfaced. Authorities say the matter was first reported to them on a Friday. Police confirmed the information and, later that same day, arrested Ambicki, who lives in Middlesex Borough. The speed of the response underscored how seriously officials treated the allegations involving children in her care.
The daycare itself had deep roots in the community. According to information posted on its website, Precious Gifts Childcare was founded in 2004 and took in children ranging from infants to five years old. The building that houses the daycare also serves as an Episcopal church, tying the facility closely to the surrounding neighborhood.
For now, the daycare remains shuttered as the case moves forward. The prosecutor's office says the investigation is ongoing, leaving open the possibility of further developments. In the meantime, the charges have raised difficult questions for the families who relied on the facility and for a community trying to make sense of the allegations.