A couple from Georgia were arrested after they allegedly left their 3-year-old unsupervised in a shed “without running water or electricity.” ABC News reported that 34-year-old Sarah Elizabeth Pombert and 35-year-old Joseph Matthew Turner allegedly left their toddler, Bjorn Turner, in their backyard shed from May 1 to 22.
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3-Year-Old Toddler Allegedly Left In “Dirty” Shed Unsupervised
According to the arrest warrant, this shed in Douglasville had no water or electricity, and it was a “dirty living space.” The parents reportedly left the child alone, “unbathed and unclothed with criminal negligence.”
The child wasn’t wearing any clothing when found, according to police, per WSBTV. A neighbor also spoke with the outlet about the backyard shed that had disappeared.
“The structure is gone. It’s not there anymore,” said neighbor Matthew Govoni. “I know there was a huge fire with explosions.”
Govoni believes that the police began to investigate the shed after the fire department investigated a fire on Memorial Day weekend. When speaking on the abhorrent state of the shed, Govoni wasn’t shocked.
“With the lifestyle they live, I’m not surprised by any of that, really,” he said. The couple had seemingly lived in that home for over a decade.
On the few occasions that he saw the toddler outside, he recalled seeing him looking happy. “I’m saddened for them and the child,” said Govoni. “But I mean, for the child, I hope they can get to a place where they can be helped.”
Pombert and Turner now reside in the Douglas County Jail with charges of second-degree child cruelty. As of Friday, court records show that neither of the two had a defense attorney.
WSBTV also noted that police said the parents keeping the child in the shed caused “cruel/excessive mental and physical pain to the toddler.”
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office has yet to disclose whether the 3-year-old is related to the couple, per the Miami Herald. We have yet to see an update since then on the child’s relations to the couple.