Woman left 4 kids home alone in ‘filth’ for days while she took a trip to New York, police say

VERNON, CT. (WFSB/Gray News) - A woman in Connecticut is accused of leaving her four kids alone for days while she took a trip to New York, according to authorities.

Vernon Police were called to conduct a welfare check at a Terrace Drive home on November 8.

When officers arrived, they found all four children—aged 11, 6, 4, and 5—left alone in the apartment.

Police described the living conditions as deplorable.

The three youngest children were naked and the oldest did not have any shoes. The two-bedroom apartment was covered in dirt and trash.

There weren’t any beds in the bedrooms and the children were sleeping on a pull-out sofa next to a dirty guinea pig cage, police said.

Authorities said the children had no clean space to wash themselves or brush their teeth.

The kitchen was also filled with old food, toys, dirt, clothes, and trash. The fridge was empty except for expired milk and a bottle of juice.

Police also observed human and cat feces on the floor and had to direct the children not to step in it multiple times.

In the hours while police were in the home, they say the children were eating moldy food off the ground.

A t investigation with the State Department of Children and Families was launched.

They found that the mother, 40-year-old Lindsey Powell had left her children alone and traveled to New York.

DCF workers arrived at the home and, after completing their investigation, removed the children from the apartment.

She told police that she felt overwhelmed by the responsibility of caring for her children and had left to escape the stress.

Powell had previously told officers that the three youngest children have autism.

Authorities believe she had no intention of returning to care for her kids.

“It breaks my heart,” said Shannon Moderacki, who was visiting a friend in Vernon.

“Definitely jail time. It’s terrible. Crimes against kids in my eyes are some of the worst,” added Gabriel Rivera, who was also visiting a friend in Vernon.

Powell was charged with four counts of risk of injury to a child.

Powell was arraigned in Vernon and held in lieu of a $250,000 surety bond.

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