Daycare owner 'beat girl, 3, to death after toddler's stripper mother did not pick her up for weeks'

Ryan Reed 'stomped on Savannah Cross' stomach while she was in his care'

He 'ignored her groans throughout the night' and she died the next day

He 'previously beat her as fellow daycare owner looked on and did nothing'

Girl's mother had not picked up her daughter since Thanksgiving



Two daycare owners have been arrested after one allegedly repeatedly beat a three-year-old girl, eventually killing her, while the other watched and did nothing.

Savannah Cross died on Tuesday after she was left to languish in the care of strangers after her mother, a stripper, had not picked her up from the in-house daycare in Phoenix, Arizona since Thanksgiving.

Ryan Reed, 27, told police he repeatedly hit, kicked and grabbed the girl at the home, while Allison Clement, 28, failed to report the abuse or seek medical aid, police spokesman Sgt. Trent Crump said.

'Abuse': Ryan Reed, left, allegedly repeatedly beat a toddler in his care while Allison Clement watched



On Monday night, Reed stomped on the child's stomach while she was on the ground and she curled up and spent the rest of the night in that position, the Arizona Republic reported.



Throughout the night, Reed heard Savannah groaning but only called authorities at 7am on Tuesday when he found her unresponsive, police said. She died on the way to hospital.

Crump added that Savannah's injuries were so severe that it will take further investigations to discover what killed her.

Investigators found the girl was covered in bruises on both side of her body. They were at different stages of healing, suggesting long-term abuse, Maricopa County Superior Courts documents noted.



Victim: Savannah Cross, 3, died after Reed allegedly stomped on her stomach following months of abuse

She had been in the care of Reed and Clement since July. Her 27-year-old mother, Ashley, returned sporadically to visit the child and pay the couple, Crump said.

The girl's father said he had also left his daughter as he suffered from post traumatic stress disorder and feared he might hurt her - but he had no idea she was being left at the strangers' home.

Stephen Cross, a former marine who lives in Colorado, said Savannah's mother told him the child was only with babysitters when she went to work.



'If I would have known that she was being left with complete strangers for weeks on end, I would have been down there in a skinny minute to get my daughter,' he told CBS5 .

Abandoned: Savannah's mother Ashley, left, had not collected her from the daycare since Thanksgiving, while her father, Stephen, right, could not care for her as he suffers from post traumatic stress disorder



Innocent: Other relatives said they were unaware Savannah had been left at the daycare for weeks on end

The girl's grandmother, Cathy Cross, added: 'You don't drop your kids at daycare and never come back except to pay them. What is that, paid abandonment? What is that?'

Family friend Frank Warneka told ABC15 he lived with Savannah and Ashley until a month ago, but knew the woman often did not pay her childcare bill.

'They [Reed and Clements] sent a note home to Ashley saying she owned them $1,200,' he said.

'I called them and said Ashley doesn't live here anymore and that they should call CPS because it isn't their responsibility to take care of Savannah.

'I think Ashley thought she loved Savannah, but I don't think she knows how to love anything.'

Regrets: Cross, pictured with Savannah as a baby, said he wished he had known she needed him

Scene: The couple advertised their 'babysitting' service on Craigslist and had two children of their own

Ashley has not been charged but Crump said more charges may be filed after the medical examiner's office reports back to police.

' If there is any of these injuries that may have been long term or extended than we might hold somebody else responsible,' he said.

It is believed the couple advertised their daycare services on Craigslist.

A child-care facility only needs a license if it is caring for four more children other than their own. Investigators found three children and two belonging to the couple at the home.