Unauthorized Day Care Center Shut Down In Mill Valley

MILL VALLEY, CA – An unauthorized day care center at a Mill Valley home was closed this week after police searched the house as part of an unrelated grand theft investigation and discovered the business.

The San Rafael Police Department, in cooperation with the Marin County Sheriff's Office and the Mill Valley Police Department, served a search warrant Wednesday at the home on Meadow Drive, where Hank Alexander Mulholland, 27, was arrested on suspicion of stealing merchandise from four drug stores and supermarkets in Marin County. The stolen merchandise was valued at more than $17,000, police said.

Mulholland was booked into Marin County Jail on suspicion of two counts of burglary and one count of grand theft.

A quantity of suspected fentanyl was found in the residence, police said, and officers and detectives put on protective equipment to prevent accidental exposure to the drug that is deadly even in minute doses.

Related: Mill Valley Man Arrested In Grand Theft Case

Mill Valley police also found that a portion of the residence was being used as a day care center called "Cozy Kid Care," without the knowledge, approval or proper permits of the city of Mill Valley.

Police contacted the California Department of Social Services and the Mill Valley code enforcement department, which led to the immediate closure of the business.

"We have an open case in regards (to) the day care and cannot provide too much information at this time other than it is under investigation," Mill Valley police Lt. Lindsay Haynes told Patch.

Mulholland was not running or in charge of the day care, Haynes added.

The owner of Cozy Kid Care, Mulholland's mother Betsy Mulholland, said Thursday afternoon she has had a state license for the day care center for 30 years, and was unaware she needed a city license. She said she applied for a city license Wednesday.

She also said she had no idea about the alleged thefts, and her son was not living with her during the time they allegedly occurred.

Mulholland said her son was living in San Francisco and working as a restaurant server until April. He moved into her home about two and a half weeks ago, and he planned to move to Seattle, Mulholland said.

She said her son was living in a back room of her house, and the day care center is located in the front of the residence.

"There were no drugs in the house," she said. "They were found in a car down the street."

Bay City News Service and Kristina Houck/Patch contributed to this report.

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