EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — A couple is being held without bond while awaiting trial after their 6-year-old daughter was found locked in a shed in “deplorable filthy conditions,” the Sixth Judicial District Attorney’s Office said on Mondays, July 7, in a news release.
The DA’s Office said Bruce and Samantha Anglin, who are charged with child abuse, are awaiting trial in the Luna County Detention Center.
On Thursday, July 3, Bruce Anglin pleaded not guilty in a detention hearing, the DA’s Office said.
The DA’s Office said that on June 20, Luna County Sheriff’s Office deputies received a call regarding a child who was believed to be locked in an outside metal shed on a rural property located near Lewis Flats and Pojoaque roads.
The deputy located the rural property and found the entrance gate locked. After announcing and activating his emergency lights, the deputy gained access to the remote property through a barbed wire fence, the DA’s Office said.
The DA’s Office said that while walking the property, he heard a child’s voice calling out from an outside shed. The deputy found that the child was locked inside the shed, with no electricity or running water, and had a water bottle.
The child was able to communicate with the deputy through a broken window. The deputy was able to discern that the child had been locked inside the shed for more than 24 hours and that her parents and younger sister were currently in town, the DA’s Office said.
The DA’s Office said that after the officers were able to access the shed, the 6-year-old was found in “deplorable filthy conditions.” She had visible bruises, a swollen eye, and told the medics that she had eaten a tortilla and a diced onion the previous day.
The child was then taken to a local hospital for further medical evaluation.
Bruce and Samantha Anglin were detained and then arrested. The two children, a 2-year-old and the 6-year-old, were placed in protective custody with the state, the DA’s Office said.
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