This Mother Locked Toddler And Autistic Child In Filthy Small Enclosures

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A woman in West Virginia was arrested after her 2 young children were found caged in kennel-like enclosures inside her home. Officials found both children naked and sitting around with their own waste smeared on the walls.

33-year-old Kristal Richard, of Shrewsbury, is accused of pinning up her 2-year-old toddler and 5-year-old autistic son in small kennel-like enclosures that lacked bedding and access to a bathroom.

According to  N.M. Manolakos of the West Virginia State Police, the two children had food, but it was scattered about their own feces.

“The way that these children were pinned up, caged up, however you want to say it, it was the worst I’d ever seen, bar none. No bedding, no bed, no mattress, feces scattered all over the wall. Horrible conditions … more like a kennel than a room for a child.”

 One child was made to live in an enclosure with 1 piece of plywood, a tarp and a plate of food. The other boy was in a tiny room with mesh gate for a door.

Authorities were warned about the children through an anonymous tip on Monday. Richard admitted to locking the children in the enclosures to eat and sleep. She also admitted that she was unfit to raise the boys. The father of the children, Joel Richard, who recently filed for divorce and lives in another home, said he was shocked to hear how his sons were living.

“I never thought in a million years that something like this would ever happen … She’s not the same person that I married six years ago. It’s hard to believe any of this has happened, and I find myself at times saying is this real.”

Authorities indicated that the rest of the home was extremely clean, which meant that the boys likely spent the majority of their time inside the enclosures.

Kristal Richard is charged with 2 counts of child neglect with risk of injury and additional charges may follow as the investigation continues.

She remains behind bars at South Central Regional Jail on a $10,000 “cash-only” bond.