A Florida woman was arrested on suspicion of child neglect after authorities found her two children living in squalid conditions.
According to the Associated Press, Volusia County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the residence in Pierson on Thursday to check on the welfare of 35-year-old Victoria Kanger and her two children, ages 14 and 5.
Upon their arrival, reports indicate they found a disgusting home that included a freezer containing the bodies of three dead dogs.
Authorities say Kanger’s home was littered with garbage and infested with cockroaches. The responding deputies reported finding fleas on their own pants after spending time inside.
“In the kitchen, there were piles of soiled dishes and trash. The kitchen had a large number of cockroaches crawling on the floor, counter tops, sink, stove and walls,” read a police report obtained by the Miami Herald.
Piles of refuse covered the floors, according to police, and the stench of feces and urine permeated the house.
Kanger’s 5-year-old daughter was reportedly seated on a couch covered with roaches when deputies arrived and told them about the dead dogs.
Her mother reportedly told police that since she did not have a shovel to bury the animals, she decided to instead put all three in the freezer.
Authorities initially responded to the home after receiving a report that the residence was “disgusting” and “non-livable.”
“I mean, there’s poop all over the floor, there’s piles of clothes, there’s roaches,” the 911 caller said.
Both of Kanger’s children were reportedly taken into the custody of the Department of Children and Families. Kanger was being held on $2,500 bond pending charges of child neglect as of the latest reports available.
[Victoria Kanger/Volusia County Sheriff’s Office]