A Roswell man accused of sexually assaulting and exploiting a teen he met online raises new questions about how the state evaluates day care workers.
Alpharetta police told Channel 2’s Mike Petchenik they discovered the man was working at two local day cares at the time of the incident.
Thirty-two-year-old Cayden Williams remains in the Fulton County Jail and is facing several charges. Police say he seduced a teenager into an inappropriate relationship and tried to blackmail him into maintaining it.
“We had a parent come forward to our agency and advise us that their 16-year-old child had an inappropriate relationship with an adult male at the time,” Officer George Gordon said.
Police say Williams met the teen on Craigslist.
“We really became concerned and involved when we were given information by the victim that the male was going to attempt to blackmail the victim by posting things in social media and things like that,” Gordon said.
Police charged Williams with sexual exploitation of a minor and according to the arrest report, a check of his criminal history turned up multiple previous arrests including aggravated stalking and child molestation in another state.
Despite the history, police say Williams secured jobs at two Alpharetta day cares this year.
“He actually had legally changed his name and when he would go to a business in order to gain employment, depending upon the business, he would use his other name,” Gordon said.
“I don’t care how many times he changed his name, he should never have received a license to work in a child care facility the way he did,” said community leader Rev. Markel Hutchins said.
Hutchins spoke about the owners of North Point Prep, the second day care to hire Williams. Hutchins said the state cleared Williams to work at the facility.
“When the owners and child care providers do everything right and the state does everything wrong, then children and their families are the ones that are exposed,” Hutchins said.
The owner of the second day care told Petchenik that he was also unaware of William’s criminal history until someone tipped him off.
He said he Googled Williams, then let him go.
In a statement on National Records Checks for Child Care Employees in Georgia, Interim Commissoner Amy M. Jacobs said:
"A records check determination is based on a national report provided to the agency upon the employee's request. This report provides the employee's record at the exact moment the check is conducted. Georgia law requires DECAL to render a determination based on certain criteria as set forth in OCGA Section 20-1A-30 et seq. If the status of an employee should change based on a crime committed, DECAL will rescind the satisfactory determination and immediately issue an unsatisfactory determination to both the employee and the child care program. At DECAL, our top priority is the health and safety of our state's youngest learners, ages birth to five years old."
At this point, police said they have no evidence Williams committed any crimes at the day cares.
