Children removed from squalid Milwaukee residence

Two children, ages 3 and 8, were removed from a filthy, vermin-infested home Monday after being found alone by Milwaukee County sheriff ’s deputies.

The deputies were serving court documents at the home about 11 a.m. when they found the children, who were wearing only T-shirts, according to a news release from the Sheriff ’s Office.

The home was infested with cockroaches, mice, rats and bedbugs, and had a strong odor of feces, according to the release, which did not provide the location of the residence. According to the release:

A neighbor gave the children food while Milwaukee County Child Protective Services workers and additional investigators responded to the home, where their mother arrived shortly before 12:30 p.m.

Through an interpreter, the woman said her four older children were in school and that she had left to run errands for a few hours.

Child Protective Services took custody of the children and contacted the schools of the older children to arrange to take them from school.

A housing inspector was called to assess living conditions in the home and the incident will be referred to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office for possible charges of child neglect, according to the release.