KANSAS CITY – An eastern Missouri woman has been arrested for child abuse for allegedly trading her foster child for an exotic monkey.
Brenda Deutsch, 70, of Lincoln County is charged with three felony counts of neglect, child abuse and child endangerment.
Between September 2022 and January, Deutsch astruck the child in the face, which resulted in bleeding, a complaint filed Monday alleges. The child's age is unclear, but court records indicate she is a teenager younger than 17.
According to NBC News, those charges stem from initial allegations of the child going missing and later being located in Texas.
Lincoln County Prosecutor Mike Wood told NBC News that Deutsch, who he said has fostered more than 200 children over the last 20 years, is being investigated in connection with allegations that she traded the child for a monkey.