Further disturbing details are coming to the public’s attention following the rescue of 16 children from an apparent house of horrors in Ohio last week.
The discovery and subsequent removal of the children has left the small town of Hamden, Ohio (population 717) reeling in disbelief. Investigators say the family had moved around a lot over the past two decades, while the children were not enrolled in school and were mostly confined to a small room in the house.
Authorities only discovered the children after attending the property, located in Vinton County, to serve an unrelated warrant for indecent exposure to Gary Siders II. At the home they found 16 children ranging in age from 18 months to 18 years old.
The property itself is alleged to have been in derelict condition, filled with dirt and feces. Attorney General Wilson noted that the house was in such a state of neglect that the children were “literally about to fall through the floor”, while they had suffered such “serious physical harm” that two had to be flown to specialist trauma centres. A further seven were taken to Columbus Hospitals, with one admitted to the ICU and intubated.
According to new reports, a number of the rescued children struggle to communicate. The eldest, an 18-year-old woman, is developmentally disabled and unable to even write her name.
“One of the investigative challenges is that [the children] are limited. They can communicate, but it’s extremely limited, and some not at all,” Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain said at a news conference last Wednesday, July 1.
Investigators allege that the children had been confined to a 12-foot by 12-foot room for years and were permitted very little contact with the outside world. Police arrested their parents, Gary Siders II, and his wife Elizabeth Siders, as well as Gary’s parents, Gary Siders Sr. and Christine Siders.
The quartet are all now facing multiple child endangerment charges and are being held on bonds to the sum of $300,000. Each suspect could face a maximum sentence of up to 192 years in prison if convicted of the crimes.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine gave a written statement on the horrifying find last week, describing it as “tragic”.
“Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson has kept me informed about the tragic situation in Vinton County. I have talked to Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain to offer any help that we might be able to provide,” DeWine told the official State of Ohio site.
“The Director of the Ohio Department of Children and Youth, Kara Wente, has been working today to assist Vinton County Children’s Services, and will continue to help in the days ahead.”
DeWine added: “It is heartbreaking to learn the conditions that these children were living in, and to learn of their medical conditions. Attorney General Wilson is an experienced prosecutor and he has told me he has never seen anything like what he saw today.
“Fran and I pray for these children, and thank the children’s services workers, law enforcement officers, and medical personnel who are helping them.”
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