DCF worker accused of falsifying well-being report

ORLANDO, Fla. — Investigators said a 38-year-old woman was supposed to be checking up on some of the most vulnerable victims of child abuse and neglect but instead lied in her paperwork to avoid being fired.

Margaret McCalman told investigators at the Department of Children and Families she was exhausted from her case load and typed up a false home visit in her computer to avoid missing a required visit.

McCalman and others in her position are required to go out and investigate allegations of child abuse and neglect, authorities said.

According to the arrest warrant, McCalman documented a visit in May 2012 to a home with at least two children.

In the report, it was written that the children were seen without abuse and that the house was cluttered but no major hazards were seen.

The catch, according to payroll data, is that McCalman wasn't working that day.

Channel 9's Karla Ray went to McCalman's home on Wednesday to ask why she would put children's lives at risk by making up information about their well-being, but no one came to the door.

McCalman quit her job at DCF month after her internal investigation started.

"We absolutely do not tolerate the falsification of child protective records," said a DCF spokeswoman. "We have a zero tolerance for it."

If convicted, McCalman could face prison time.

WFTV