A filthy home, a filthy child. That's what led to the arrest of an Osceola County mother for child neglect.
Deputies said a 10-year-old boy and his four brothers and sisters between the ages of 8 and 14 are now living with family members.
The 10-year-old boy lives within walking distance of the school but his teacher was noticing that he was showing up late every day for school. She also noticed that he smelled and his clothes seemed like they were dirty. Deputies said the teacher did the right thing by contacting them.
“They made contact with his mother, made entry into the home and it was in deplorable conditions," said sheriff's office spokesperson Twis Lizasuain. "There was dirty clothing everywhere, there were seven dogs living in the home, with dog feces all over the floor, both upstairs and downstairs.”
When deputies got to the home, they said Betsy Velasquez, 34, was defensive at first.
“Initially she was uncooperative and she claimed that there was plenty of food. She had paid the bills, everything was up to date," Lizasuain said. "It was the condition of the home and the fact that the children had said that they couldn’t remember the last time they had taken baths, the clothes were dirty and the house was just deplorable. And that is the reason why she was charged with child neglect.”
DCF is investigating this case. Right now the children are living with relatives and have not been taken into protective custody. We stopped by the home but no one answered the door.
Meanwhile, deputies said Velasquez eventually admitted to them, that the house had not been cleaned in six months.