Babysitter charged with sexually abusing children
FARRELL, Pa. (WKBN) – A woman with an address in Euclid, Ohio is facing child sexual abuse charges in Mercer County after a mother notified police about her behavior while babysitting the mother's children inside a Farrell home.
According to a criminal complaint, Shante Crawford, 29, is charged with the following 23 counts:
One count of aggravated indecent assault of a child, a first-degree felony
Five felony counts of endangering the welfare of children, second-degree felonies
Five counts of unlawful contact with a minor – obscene and other sexual materials and performance, third-degree felonies
Five counts of disseminating sexually explicit material to a minor, third-degree felonies
Five misdemeanor counts of corruption of minors
One misdemeanor count of indecent assault of a person less than 13 years of age
Corruption of minors – defendant age 18 or above
According to the complaint, the mother of the victims reported to police on Oct. 2 that she believed her babysitter, Crawford, had been sexually abusing her children over a period of time and became suspicious when she heard sexual noises on her Alexa.
The five victims are between 3 and 9 years old.
The mother said she paid for Crawford to take a lie detector test at a Youngstown facility and during the exam, Crawford admitted to sexually assaulting the 4-year-old child and showing the children pornographic videos.
When police interviewed Crawford, she said that she admitted to showing the children pornographic videos but said she answered incorrectly when she admitted to sexually assaulting the 4-year-old during the polygraph.
The polygraph test was turned over to police and after interviewing the victims, charges were filed Thursday in Mercer County Court. No further court date is listed yet in online court records.
