Kindergarten Teachers Beating, Kicking Children Violently Caught On CCTV

Two Chinese kindergarten teachers in Italy were arrested after a video surfaced showing them violently dragging, beating and kicking children. Zheng Moli, 38, and Hong Pingping, 26, were seen in surveillance footage abusing the children aged between three and six, Daily Mail reported.

The incidents took place on 41 different occasions in January alone. The videos of the incidents were captured on cameras installed by police at the center in Tuscany, according to reports from Italian media.

During questioning, Zheng — who allegedly got her degree in education in China — claimed such "teaching" methods were "normal" in her home country and "nobody has told me not to beat children with sticks in Italy," according to Chinese sources. Zheng said the purpose of using sticks and clubs was to get the attention of children.

Zheng and Hong both worked at a kindergarten run by the Marco Polo Cultural Association at the China Town in the city of Prato, reported La Repubblica Firenze.

The video of the incident was shared on YouTube after police arrested the two teachers, who were facing prosecution. A third teacher, who was not identified, was also investigated but was not arrested.

The incidents of abuse came to light after one of the kindergarten's teachers reportedly confided possible maltreatment at the center to a parent. Concerned about the safety of the children, the parent contacted police urging for an investigation. Local police, in a bid to find evidence, installed cameras in three classrooms.

Footage released showed one female teacher, wearing a white dress, apparently slapping and kicking one child sitting on a chair. The teacher then roughly dragged the child outside the classroom. Another female teacher was seen swinging another child in the air.

In a separate incident, one kindergarten worker was seen chasing a child and beating him with a mop.

According to local news site Notizie di Prato, investigators found 25 "major offences" by teachers in the kindergarten between Jan. 5 and 13. There were 13 more similar incidents in the following week.

The news of the latest incident comes just two days after a 22-year-old kindergarten teacher in central China was sentenced to eight months in prison for stabbing children with paper clips because they wouldn't nap. According to Daily Mail, the woman, surnamed Lan, used paper clips to prick more than 20 students on their arms, legs and buttocks at a pre-school in Xi'an city's Yanta district in Shaanxi province last June.