ALEXANDRIA, Va. (DC News Now) — Fairfax County police arrested a 46-year-old mother and her apparent boyfriend for chaining her two children to furniture.
The arrests, which happened on Aug. 15, were still the talk of the Groveton neighborhood on Tuesday. Neighbors of the apartment complex on the 6700 block of Tower Drive expressed their sadness, especially for the two kids, ages 7 and 9.
“I saw the police showing up one after another,” said Stephen Webber, a neighbor who told DC News Now he saw the police response. “The kid was just standing there, kind of. And he looked like he was in distress.”
According to court records obtained and detailed by the Associated Press, the nine-year-old borrowed a cell phone from a roommate in the apartment and sent a photo of his chained foot to his older sister, who called 911.
The documents also indicate the kids were chained to “‘scare them’ so they wouldn’t leave the apartment.”
“I never expect something [like] this to happen to the kids,” one neighbor said.
The woman, 46, bailed out of jail and is due back in court in October. She is facing two counts of child abuse, two counts of child cruelty and two counts of abduction of a minor.
The man, 29, is still behind bars, though he has a bond hearing scheduled for Wednesday. He’s facing the same charges.
DC News Now is not identifying the suspects to protect the children’s identities.
“If a kid’s involved and he’s calling you guys, then obviously something is going on, you know?” Webber said. “So I just wish somebody would have stepped in sooner than later.”
