In the past six months, stories of young children being abused in schools and kindergartens have been so common that they are barely newsworthy anymore. However, sometimes a punishment is so creative that it merits a mention.

The parents of a 3 year-old in Guangzhou’s Liwan District have reported his kindergarten to the police after the child claimed a 2-3 millimeter wound on his penis was caused by one of his teachers piercing it with a needle, 163 reports.

Little Xiao Lou (alias) started having nightmares on Monday April 8. Two days later, his mother noticed a red wound on his penis in the bathroom. Xiao Lou told her that his teacher had done it with a needle as punishment for being disobedient.

The following day, the parents went with police to the child’s Pearl Island Kindergarten where the offending needle was found in a drawer in the child’s classroom.

Each class at the kindergarten has three adults in charge of it, two professional teachers and a classroom assistant. It is Xiao Lou’s 40 year-old classroom assistant Mrs. Zhang who stands accused of committing the act, but she denies it.

The principal of the kindergarten explained that the needle belonged to Xiao Lou’s class teacher, Mrs. Liang, who would occasionally use it in classroom activities.

In the early hours of April 12, five teachers from the kindergarten were released by police after questioning.

Despite denying responsibility for the child’s injury, the kindergarten has offered to pay he family 2-3,000 yuan in compensation.