An investigation is underway after a young boy was found inside a dog cage inside a home in Philadelphia’s Mayfair neighborhood, police said.
Police first received a call shortly after 1 p.m. Thursday reporting a person screaming on the 4200 block of Glenview Street.
Responding officers found two girls, ages 4 and 5, partially dressed outside a home while it was raining. Police then went inside the house and found a 6-year-old boy locked inside a dog cage, investigators said.
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An elderly woman in a wheelchair was also inside the home along with a 40-year-old man who was upstairs. Police said they believe the elderly woman is the grandmother or great grandmother of the children while the man is also a family member.
Police were then met by a woman who told them she was the mother of at least one of the three children, investigators said. The woman was taken to the Special Victims Unit where she is being interviewed by police. She has not been charged though police continue to investigate.
Police said none of the children appeared to have been physically harmed. They were all taken to the hospital for an evaluation. Police also said two other children live at the home though they were at school at the time.
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Neighbors told NBC10 the boy who was inside the cage has autism though police have not confirmed this.
"We don't know entirely everything that's going on here,” Philadelphia Police Public Information Officer Eric Gripp said. “We have a long investigation ahead of us. But obviously we don't live in a world where under any situation whatsoever we should have a child inside of a cage or young children outside standing in the rain."
Gripp said police are working with DHS to make sure the children get the care that they need as the investigation continues. Police are also searching for the father of the children.
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
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