6-year-old boy found naked in cage, Philadelphia police say

PHILADELPHIA (KYW) – Police said they found a six-year-old boy naked inside a dog cage Thursday.

A neighbor called 911 after he saw two young girls outside, partially dressed and screaming.

“Sometimes you just never know what’s going on behind closed doors,” said Eric Gripp of Philadelphia police.

Police were called to a home in Mayfair just before 1 p.m. Thursday after a neighbor found two young sisters outside screaming.

Eric Gripp, Philadelphia Police: “They saw two girls ages 4 and 5 that were partially dressed outside in the rain.” Gripp said. “The officers were able to pick them up and gain entry inside of the property, and once they got in there, they came upon a 6-year-old that was locked inside a dog cage.”

Officials said the children’s mother would often lock the little boy inside the dog cage when she left the home. The children’s grandmother, who is in a wheelchair, and uncle, who is disabled, were also home when police arrived.

Two other children live at the home but were at school.

“It just boggles my mind that they put their kids in cages,” said Hector Perez, who saw the little girls outside in the alley and immediately called 911.

“They have Pampers on. They have no shirts. They have no pants, no shoes. They’re screaming. It’s raining. It’s cold.” He said.

He’s one of several neighbors who say they’ve seen state Department of Human Services officials at the home several times.

“Over the past couple of years, they’ve been here three, four, five times,” he said.

Perez said while he’s always tried to look out for the kids, he had no idea it was this bad.

“I knew something was going on, but you tell me he’s putting kids in a cage? Hell no, hell no, I can never imagine that,” he said.

The children were taken to a hospital and appear to be physically OK. They remain in protective custody.

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