Nanny Accused of Abandoning 3 Children In Apartment

A Canutillo nanny was arrested after a child was seen wandering outside about 4:30 a.m. Wednesday.

A neighbor spotted the 8-year-old girl walking alone outside her home in the 7000 block of First Street in Canutillo, and began knocking on doors to determine where the child, who was described as being scared, lived.

El Paso County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the apartments, and it was discovered that two other children, ages 3 and 4, had also been left alone for more than an hour.

Child Protective Services was immediately called, and deputies contacted the parents, who were out of town but made arrangements to have relatives pick up their two children. The nanny is the mother of 4-year-old child.

Several hours later, deputies were dispatched to a child custody dispute, and after questioning the woman involved determined that she was the children’s nanny. They said Susana Soto was unable to provide a reasonable explanation for leaving the children unattended.

Soto was arrested on suspicion of three counts of abandoning or endangering a child. She was booked into the El Paso County Jail with bond set at $6,000.