Martinsburg Woman Accused Of Hiding Abuse Of Her Children

A Martinsburg woman is facing charges of making false statements to police and child endangerment after her boyfriend was arrested and charged with multiple felony child abuse-related charges.

Bedford State Police have accused Daisy M. Maust, 29, of covering up suspected child abuse committed by her boyfriend, Dakota Bussard of Bedford.

According to police, on Dec. 17, a trooper was dispatched to a Bedford home to perform a welfare check on three children. Police said the reason for the welfare check was because the previous day, one of the children suffered a broken leg, one a broken arm and that all three children had bruises.

When police questioned Bussard, he told them that the child sustained the broken leg while he was in Walmart and Maust was in the car, after falling out of the car and getting her leg tangled in a diaper bag. Police said Maust gave a similar statement.

On Feb. 10, police began investigating Bussard for covering the mouth of one of the children and bruising their ribs. Maust told police that Bussard did cover the toddler’s mouth and grabbed her ribs. Maust also recanted her statement about the incident at Walmart, telling police that she was in the store and Bussard was in the car with the children.

Police said Maust told them that Bussard had been harming the children by squeezing and twisting one of their legs and squeezing their fingers with a pair of pliers. She said Bussard threw a cowboy boot at one of children’s heads, causing a lump. Maust also allegedly told police that Bussard had told her that he burned one of the children with a lighter. Police said Maust admitted to lying to police about what happened at Walmart.

Police said Maust told them that the children had been telling her that Bussard was hitting them and had seen bruises on all of them. When police asked her why she didn’t report the abuse, Maust allegedly told them that she was afraid Bussard would hurt her instead. She told police that when she tried to talk to Bussard about abusing the children, he would become angry.

Bussard was arrested and charged with felony aggravated assault on a victim less than six years of age, felony endangering the welfare of children and misdemeanor counts of simple assault, endangering the welfare of children and providing false information to police. He is in the Bedford County Jail on $100,000 cash bail.

Maust is facing misdemeanor counts of endangering the welfare of children and making false statements to police.

She is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on April 13, in front of Bedford Magisterial Judge Kathy Calhoun.