Parents And Grandmother Arrested After Toddler Found Locked in Bug-Infested Cage -Ohio deputies investigating an alleged $exual assault on Sunday found a toddler locked in a cage and another holding a meth pipe.
Parents And Grandmother Arrested After Toddler Found Locked in Bug-Infested Cage
The Hocking County Sheriff’s Office arrested the children’s parents, 38-year-old Franklin “TJ” Varney and 25-year-old Megan Smith, and the toddlers’ grandmother, 61-year-old Ella Webb, and charged with child endangering, WFMJ reported.
All three were arraigned in court on Wednesday. After the proceedings, Varney insisted the charges were “bogus” as he was led away by deputies.
“I was just protecting my son from burning the house down while he was asleep,” Varney told a WTTE reporter. “He was not in a cage. He was in a play pin with a top on so that he couldn’t get out and grab a lighter, ma’am. There was no child endangering. It was just actually protecting him for his own safety because he gets a hold of lighters, and he’s two years old and will catch the house on fire,
Deputies said a 3-year-old boy was in a makeshift cage secured with zip ties and filled with bugs, soiled bedding, and a cup of spoiled milk. A 2-year-old girl was walking around carrying a methamphetamine pipe.
According to the sheriff’s office, Varney and Smith, who was involved in the $exual assault investigation, fled the residence, abandoning the children to their grandmother, and were captured on Monday, according to WSAZ.
The children have been placed in emergency foster care. Webb, Varney, and Smith were given $200,000 bonds each on Wednesday, WTTE said. A grand jury will now consider their cases for indictment.
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Webb, Varney, and Smith Arrested: After 3-Year-Old Found in Cage ‘Filled With Bugs’
Two parents were recently arrested after their 3-year-old child was found locked inside a cage that was “filled with bugs,” according to a local sheriff’s office.
In a Facebook post on Monday night, the Hocking County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio announced that 38-year-old Franklin “TJ” Varney and 25-year-old Megan Smith were taken into custody ”after they were chased by law enforcement on foot through the woods near their residence.”
The arrest comes shortly after deputies with the Hocking County Sheriff’s Office arrived at the couple’s residence which was part of a sexual assault investigation.
When deputies entered the residence, located on Bear Run Road, they discovered that it was left in “deplorable condition” with a 3-year-old child locked in a cage with zip ties. “The cage that the infant was in was filled with bugs, soiled bedding, and a cup full of spoiled milk,” the sheriff’s office said in the press release.
In addition to the 3-year-old child, deputies also discovered a 2-year-old child walking around the home “holding a methamphetamine pipe.”
A spokesperson for the Hocking County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to Newsweek that the two children were transported to an emergency foster care center.
“The parents of the infants left the children and fled the residence due to their involvement with the sexual assault investigation,” the press release said. According to the sheriff’s office, after the parents fled the scene, deputies discovered that the children’s grandmother was in custody of the children, prompting officers to detain her.
Ohio Deputies: Officers serving warrant find 3-year-old in cage, 2-year-old holding meth pipe. …found a 3-year-old inside a cage that had been locked using zip ties. Detectives said the cage was filled with bugs, soiled bedding and a cup of spoiled milk. https://t.co/Rds9L1bneK
— Suzie S (@suziesuchi) September 19, 2022
The grandmother, identified by the sheriff’s office as 61-year-old Ella Webb, was “arrested and charged with Endangering Children, a 3rd Degree Felony,” the press release said.
“She was transported to the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office Jail to await her arraignment in Hocking County Municipal Court,” the sheriff’s office said.
Shortly after the parents fled the residence, law enforcement officials filed third-degree felony charges of child endangerment for both the parents and nationwide arrest warrants were issued.
Prior to their capture, Hocking County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Caleb J. Moritz urged the parents to surrender themselves and said, “if they choose to run from their responsibilities, as they did tonight, the Hocking County Sheriff’s Office will tirelessly leverage every local, State, and Federal resource available to bring these two to justice.”
