Seven children were found “left alone” in a Wisconsin apartment for a week after police received reports of them being unsupervised.
Madison Police Department (MPD) Public Information Officer Stephanie Fryer said police were called to a Madison apartment complex on Mifflin Street on Feb. 28 after authorities received a tip from Child Protective Services, per WSAW TV.
“Our team was contacted by CPS. Some people living in that building called and said, ‘Hey, it seems like kids have been left alone for a while,’ “ Fryer told the local news station several days after the incident.
She added that the children ranged in ages from 2 to 13 years old, and police described the apartment conditions they found the kids in as “deplorable.”
“In this case, there were reports of garbage cans overflowing, broken toilets, feces and urine piling up, and just clothes strewn about,” Fryer said.
Fryer explained that a neighbor had been dropping off food for the children outside the apartment door, per ABC affiliate WKOW.
CPS has placed the children in the care of a family friend, according to FOX 8.
Authorities say the children’s mother was located in Illinois. She has since returned to Wisconsin and is in touch with MPD, per the outlet. The identity of the mother, as well as why she left her children alone, has not been disclosed.
No arrests or charges have been made in the case, per FOX 8.
Both the MPD and Dane County Child Protective Services did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on March 9.
