Restaurant manager saves 11-year-old boy from parents after noticing bruises

• Restaurant manager Flavaine Carvalho noticed that a young boy was deprived of food while he and his parents were dining in at their restaurant.
• She also noticed that the young boy, looking so sad and timid, had a scratch on his forehead and bruises on his body.
• Out of concern, the manager called 911 after learning that the child needed help.

It’s amazing how a simple gesture can save an 11-year-old boy from abusive parents.

The boy was with his mother Kristen Swann, stepfather Timothy Wilson II, and sister when they were having a “super strange” New Year’s Day dinner at Mrs. Potato Restaurant in Orlando.

When restaurant manager Flavaine Carvalho noticed the young boy wasn’t allowed by his parents to eat while they were dining in, she just felt something was dubious.

“When the order came to the table, I observed that the boy was denied food. That was the first thing that [got] my attention,” Flavaine said

She thought there was something wrong with the food so she immediately asked the boy’s parents. They answered that the kid would take his dinner at home.

“This was super strange to me,” she recalled.

The concerned manager then noticed that the boy had a “big scratch” on his forehead and bruises on his body.

“I started observing them and I could [see] that he was super quiet and sad,” said Flavaine.

Feeling sorry for the boy, she discreetly held up handwritten signs behind the parents, asking “Do you need help?”

As soon as the boy responded “yes,” she went to the back of the restaurant and called 911.

The police initially arrested Timothy on one count of third-degree child abuse, but later on arrested him for the second time on January 6, after learning about his more abusive acts which the boy told the detectives.

Since then, the stepfather has been charged with multiple counts of aggravated child abuse and child neglect.

Charged with two counts of child neglect, the boy’s mom was also arrested on January 6.

In a video released on the Orlando Police Department’s social media pages on Thursday, Flavaine shared the entire story she witnessed.

With genuine care in her heart, Flavaine told NBC affiliate WESH that the young boy is the real hero of the story, not her.

“I would like to give him a big hug and tell him that I’m so proud of him,” she said.

Source: Today