NORTHFIELD, Minn. — There's new information about the case involving a Northfield Public Schools employee who was fired for allegedly putting melatonin in a child's bottle.
A new report from the Minnesota Department of Human Services found this may not have been an isolated case and could've been happening for two years.
The DHS investigation dates back to 2018 when co-workers of the person in question allegedly found tablets similar to what they discovered three months ago.
The report says staff members found them in the infant room of the Early Ventures childcare center at the Northfield Community Education Center, which is part of the public school district.
Superintendent Dr. Matt Hillmann said the tablets were not reported back then because there wasn't a pattern and the suspect provided a reasonable explanation.
"These tablets were found intermittently over time and as they started to show up with more frequency this fall our staff became suspicious," said Dr. Hillman. That's when he said the staff reported it to administrators. The district started its own investigation and eventually fired the employee.
The new report, which can be read here, lays out examples of staff confronting their co-worker who claimed the tablets were mints to control her gag reflexes when changing children's diapers. It says the staff found the tablets on the floor, behind the refrigerator and on crib sheets.
According to the documents, the employees then installed a video camera and the report says it shows the person grabbing something from behind a bottle warmer and then showed the person "put his/her fingers inside the alleged victim's open bottle and drop something into it."
The report also says law enforcement sent the tablets to a lab and the results in fact "indicate melatonin."
"We are terribly sorry that this incident took place," said Dr. Hillmann. "I still am angry about it because this kind of incident damages the trust we have with families."
The report says at least six families noticed their children had irregular sleep patterns at the facility and at home, along with being groggy and irritable. It also says one victim's pediatrician said there's no research to show whether melatonin was bad for children.
The report says at least three families "called their children’s physicians who said that they did not need to be seen and instructed them to monitor their children."
Dr. Hillman said the district continues to support the parents who were affected and is providing them with a parent educator and school nurse.
The report says the person in question admitted to police they put a tablet in the bottle of at least one victim to control their vomiting.
There's enough evidence now that DHS says the person is disqualified from ever working in child care again.
In a written statement to KARE 11, Northfield Police Chief Mark Elliott said the Northfield Police Department has completed its investigation and submitted the case to the Rice County Attorney’s Office. According to Elliott, they declined to make any charges.