A couple in Arizona has been charged with child abuse after they allegedly kept their four adopted children locked in bedrooms and deprived them of food.
Benito Gutierrez, 69, and Carol Gutierrez, 64, of Tucson, Arizona, were arrested by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and charged with three counts of child abuse each, the Daily Mail reports.
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An investigation into the couple opened last week after one of their adopted children escaped through a bedroom window and ran to a nearby dollar store. There, the boy requested to use the phone, but due to the child’s age and condition, the worker decided to call 911 for him.
When police arrived at the Gutierrez’s home shortly after, they discovered three other children, ages six to 12, being held in deplorable conditions. According to a statement by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, the children were locked in separate bedrooms that had no lighting. In one of the bedrooms, authorities discovered a bucket that the children were forced to use as a toilet. The statement also alleges that the four children were deprived of food, water, and access to the bathroom for up to 12 hours at a time.
All four children are now in the care of the state. Neither defendant has entered a plea.
The case draws similarity to the widely reported case of 13 children discovered being held prisoner by their parents, David and Louise Turpin, in Peris, California. The case made headlines in January after one of the children managed to escape their “house of horrors” and call police, saying that she and her siblings were being held against their will. All 13 children were malnourished, living in extreme filth, and shackled to their beds. The children are now currently doing well and are being exposed to everyday things, such as iPads.
David and Louise Turpin have been charged with torture, abuse, and false imprisonment. They have both pleaded not guilty.
