MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Police arrested a woman Thursday after they found five children living in deplorable conditions in a third floor Connecticut apartment, according to WTIC.
Police and fire crews were called to the apartment in downtown Middletown around 2 p.m. after a report of an air conditioner fire caused by a cigarette thrown from the third floor window. The rear exit of the apartment was blocked by trash, fire officials learned.
The health department was also on scene because of complaints that there was a leak from the apartment into the second floor ceiling.
Chloe Edwards, 27, opened the door when officers arrived and they were “taken back by the smell coming from the apartment.” Police said the carpet was covered with food, urine, feces, and cockroach carcasses. There were “a multitude of flies were in the apartment as well.”
Officers found five juveniles in the apartment – four were her children and the fifth had been reported missing by her mother Aug. 4.
Officers found a tub with a continuously running faucet and a broken toilet, according to the police report. There were also broken beds and mattresses on the floor, some of which were stained with vomit and feces. Dishes in the kitchen overflowed from the sink. The refrigerator contained only two jars of sauce, a can of pasta and two small jars of baby food.
Officers found exposed electrical sockets and a 3- to 4-foot pile of debris blocking the exit.
Police said that while waiting for officials from the Department of Children and Families to arrive, “two of the juveniles found dry dog food on the floor and began eating it, saying they were hungry.”
Edwards was charged with five counts of risk of injury and her bond was set at $10,000. She was scheduled to appear in court on Friday.
The children were taken it protective custody by DCF and health officials placed an “unfit for occupancy” on the apartment.