A WOMAN has been arrested after authorities found two boys living in a neglected home covered in human waste and padlocks on bedroom doors.
Police in Florida and the Department of Children and Families entered Bettina Miller, 66, home in Pierson after receiving a tip that two boys younger than 16 were being neglected at the residence.
Upon entering the residence, officials claim they found the home “cluttered and filthy, littered with animal and human waste and infested with bugs.”
The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office claims the residents in the home used a bucket to use the bathroom after learning the plumbing had been broken for several weeks.
“Deputies observed deplorable conditions, including learning that the home’s plumbing had been broken for several weeks, rendering the toilets unusable,” the sheriff’s office said.
“The residents use buckets to use the bathroom inside and a water hose outside to shower.”
Authorities also found several dogs and puppies in the home, some in cages and others running freely.
Officials claim they also found spoiled food and insects in the kitchen, as well as trash and clothes spread on the floor in each bedroom.
Shockingly, cops noticed Miller’s bedroom had a chain and padlock on it.
However, according to investigators, the 66-year-old woman told officials she only uses the lock to keep the teens out of her room and affirmed that she does not lock them inside.
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Miller was arrested and charged with child neglect and abuse.
DCF took the boys into custody until arrangements could be made to place them with other family members.
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