3 Women Allegedly Encouraged Elderly Patients to Fight Each Other at Assisted Living Facility

Steve Helling

Three workers at a North Carolina assisted living facility have been arrested after police say that they encouraged the residents to fight each other while they videotaped them.

Marilyn McKey, Tonacia Tyson and Taneshia Jordan all worked at the Danby House Assisted Living and Memory Care facility in Winston Salem. According to court documents obtained by WBFF, the women would watch, encourage and film fights between the patients, including one between two women, ages 70 and 73.

Documents allege that one of the residents was heard yelling, “Let go, help me, help me, let go,” as the employees continued to watch the fight. One of the suspects allegedly told the woman to stop screaming, but did nothing to assist her.

PEOPLE confirms that all three women have been charged with assaulting disabled persons. The arrest reports allege that at least two separate events occurred last June, and that the women did nothing to stop the violence — and in fact goaded the female patients to beat each other up.

According to the Winston-Salem Journal, police received a tip about the alleged elder abuse in June. Their Criminal Investigations Division worked with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to investigate the matter and identified the three women as suspects.

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Taneshia Jordan, 26, and Tonacia Tyson, 20, have both been arrested on one charge of assaulting an individual with a disability. Marilyn McKey, 32, faces two counts of the same offense.

Police allege that McKey also assaulted one of the residents by shoving her.

In a statement, the Danby House says that they acted quickly when they first learned about the allegations. “McKey, Tyson, and Jordan were fired in June when managers were alerted to the situation,” the statement reads. “Additional staff training and a more rigorous vetting process for all new and existing employees at Danby House have been implemented.”

All three women have been released on bond. Court documents do not reflect an attorney authorized to speak on any of the women’s behalf. They have not yet entered pleas in the case.