Couple locked 7-year-old non-verbal boy with autism in storage trunk with urine-soaked blankets, half-eaten pizza: Cops

Authorities in

arrested a couple who allegedly locked a 7-year-old non-verbal boy with autism in a storage locker in an “unsanitary” home.

According to a press release from the Carter County Sheriff’s Office, deputies serving a search warrant on an unrelated case at a home in the 300 block of Blevins Hollow Road, Elizabethton in western Tennessee “discovered evidence of child abuse.” Cops arrested Mikki Dee Moody, 36, and Sean David Moody, 39, for aggravated child abuse and neglect and child endangerment.

On Thursday, deputies executing the warrant along with agents from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation found the Moodys and the boy who lived at the home. Agents took Sean Moody into custody on an unrelated abuse of a vulnerable adult charge, authorities said.

“It was discovered while conducting the search of the residence that living conditions were unsanitary,” sheriff’s office investigator Preston White said in a statement.

There were exposed wiring protruding from wall outlets and animal and human feces throughout the home, according to White. Deputies then reportedly found a brown storage trunk in the living room.

“The trunk contained urine-soaked blankets, a pillow, half-eaten pizza, and clothing that contained a substance consistent with blood,” White said.

The Moodys allegedly gave the boy food and then locked him in the trunk. Cops took the couple to the Carter County Jail. Mikki Moody has since posted a $75,000 bond while Sean Moody remains in jail, records show.

Deputies notified the Department of Children’s Services who responded to the home and took custody of the boy.

According to the TBI, Sean Moody’s abuse of a vulnerable adult charge stems from him mistreating his adult sister with a developmental disability. Investigators received a tip about the abuse on Aug. 7.

“During the investigation, agents determined that the victim was being abused by her brother, Sean Moody, who also served as her caregiver,” agents said.

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