Four members of the same family have been charged after authorities say 16 children were found living in what investigators described as some of the worst conditions they have ever encountered inside a Vinton County home.
Gary Siders Sr., Gary Siders Jr., Christina Siders and Elizabeth Siders each face 16 counts of endangering children after investigators executed a search warrant Tuesday at a residence in the 100 block of Ohmer Street in the Village of Hamden.
The four suspects appeared by video for an initial court hearing Wednesday, where they pleaded not guilty. A judge set bond at $300,000 for each defendant.
The investigation led to the removal of 16 children ranging in age from 18 months to 18 years old. Authorities said every child received a medical evaluation. Several remain in serious condition, and two children were flown to hospitals because of the severity of their medical conditions.
A criminal complaint alleges the children were abused and suffered serious physical harm, though investigators have not publicly released additional details.
During a Wednesday news conference, officials said the case was isolated to a single family. The suspects are the children’s grandmother, grandfather, mother and father.
Vinton County Prosecutor William Archer said investigators uncovered the children while conducting a separate, parallel investigation that ultimately led authorities to the home.
The children are now safe and are being placed into the temporary custody of Vinton County Job and Family Services, Archer said.
Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson called the conditions inside the residence nearly impossible to describe.
“What I saw until this point is almost beyond comprehension in this country … that it can happen in a house where there are people taking care of kids,” Wilson said.
Wilson, a former prosecutor, said the case is the worst instance of child abuse and neglect he has witnessed during his career.
Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain said investigators encountered widespread human waste throughout the home while collecting evidence.
“There was a high presence of bacterial and human feces,” Cain said, adding that portions of the home’s floor were so deteriorated the children “were literally about to fall through the floor.”
Cain also said livestock are often housed in better conditions than those found inside the residence. Investigators believe the children had been confined to an area measuring roughly 12 feet by 12 feet for about the past four years.
Authorities said some of the children were unable to speak, read or write when investigators attempted to communicate with them.
Wilson credited the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and local law enforcement agencies with gathering the evidence necessary to intervene when they did.
“I think if they would’ve waited another 24 hours, there’s a high probability we’d be dealing with a death or multiple deaths,” Wilson said.
Investigators also said there was little evidence indicating children were living at the residence. The property is owned by a trust.
Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday evening that he had been briefed on the investigation and offered state assistance to local officials.
“It is heartbreaking to learn the conditions that these children were living in, and to learn of their medical conditions,” DeWine said in a statement. “Attorney General Wilson is an experienced prosecutor and he has told me he has never seen anything like what he saw today.”
The investigation remains ongoing.
