Diana Ornelas: Stanford preschool teacher, 22, arrested for murder of friend as her young students napped
STANFORD, CALIFORNIA: A Stanford University preschool teacher was arrested for murder while her young students napped in the classroom, officials said. Diana Ornelas, 22, was arrested in connection with the murder of Oliver Waterfall, 24, while she working at the daycare center of the prestigious California institution.
“The arrest happened at naptime, and outside of the perimeter of the CCSC [Children’s Center of the Stanford Community] campus. Children were not present when this occurred, and it did not disrupt operations,” CCSC officials wrote to parents, according to New York Post. The childcare facility provides service only to children of Stanford staff and students as an independent non-profit, the website claims.
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Waterfall was dead for almost a month
Waterfall’s body was discovered after almost a month along a Santa Cruz County highway on April 11, 2023. Officials believe that Ornelas was friends with both the victim and Dennis Novoa, 27, who was also slapped with charges in connection to Waterfall’s shooting death. The motive behind the murder is not yet known. Ornelas was fired from her job following her arrest, the letter to the children's parents said. She was held without bail. She and Novoa are set to be arraigned on May 17, 2023.
CCSC assistant director issues statement
“The arrest happened at naptime, and outside of the perimeter of the CCSC campus. Children were not present when this occurred, and it did not disrupt operations,” wrote CCSC assistant directors Rachel Lim and Janet Zamudio in a message informing parents about the arrest, The Stanford Daily reported.
“We are all shocked and distressed by this news because CCSC is a place and community that means so much to all of us,” they continued.
Indiana daycare worker accused of covering child's head
Meaww previously reported that Fishers daycare worker Molly Taxter was arrested on April 25 and has been charged with various felonies for allegedly touching children under her care inappropriately. Taxter was brought to the Hamilton County Jail, where a $150,000 bond was set.
The parent of a child attending the Kiddie Academy Daycare on Olio Road claimed that her daughter arrived home with a handprint bruise on her leg, prompting the Fishers Police Department to open an investigation. Police were informed by the parent that she spoke with the owner of the daycare center right away.
Authorities claimed that the parent and the owner watched a video of the child's classroom that showed an employee caressing the child in an inappropriate way. The facility's owner fired Taxter, a 23-year-old Noblesville resident, after seeing the video, and on Tuesday, April 25, police made a non-confrontational arrest. She has been charged with 19 felonies and charges of violence, according to Fox 59.