IRVINE, Calif. — A nanny in California has been charged with multiple counts of child abuse after video allegedly showed her repeatedly hitting and violently shaking a baby over several weeks, prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Iara Dossantos Bomfim, 29, left for Brazil in July after the baby’s mother reviewed footage from the family’s nanny camera and discovered the alleged abuse, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
The baby’s mother checked the camera footage on July 11, 2026, after hearing her three-month-old son scream. She had gone to the nursery to check on him, and Bomfim reportedly told her that everything was fine. However, the mother later watched the recording and allegedly saw Bomfim sitting on a yoga ball while violently bouncing the baby, causing his head and neck to move back and forth and from side to side. The video then appeared to show Bomfim striking the back of the baby’s head with a closed fist, the D.A.’s office said in a news release.
According to prosecutors, the recordings document Bomfim allegedly punching, hitting and shaking the infant beginning June 17, when he was 2 months and 10 days old. The alleged abuse continued until the baby was slightly more than 3 months old.
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Bomfim was arrested Friday after returning from Brazil. Prosecutors said she was trying to create another Care.com account to promote her nanny services when she was taken into custody.
She faces 10 felony counts of child abuse.
Bomfim has pleaded not guilty and remains jailed on $500,000 bail. A conviction on all charges could result in a maximum sentence of 18 years in state prison.
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