Six childcare workers arrived for their scheduled shifts at a Southeast Washington day care center, only to find the locks had been changed. Parents bringing their children to the facility found the doors shut, with children’s belongings and medications still inside.
The business had closed without warning, and the employees would never receive their final paychecks, according to a lawsuit filed by D.C. Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb.
“We won’t let any company pocket the money that its hard-working employees have earned,” Schwalb said, announcing legal action against Little Samaritan Child Development Center Inc., now known as Little Swalih Education Center Inc., and its founder, owner, and chief executive Ode H. Hines.
The lawsuit, filed this month in the D.C. Superior Court, alleges that Hines and the now-defunct center withheld nearly $15,000 in wages from six employees after the facility’s sudden closure on July 26, 2024. The District seeks unpaid wages, additional damages, and civil penalties.
According to a court complaint, nine days before the shutdown, two board members who also worked at the facility confronted Hines about what they believed were unauthorized withdrawals of substantial sums from the center’s bank account, including a $200,000 withdrawal on Sept. 30, 2020.
On July 17, 2024, the two employees called a special board meeting to seek an explanation for the transactions.
Little Samaritan operated at 5100 E St. SE in Ward 7, offering childcare and...
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