Police: Fayette County parents kept 6-year-old girl zip-tied in dog crate
By Madeline Bartos
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BROWNSVILLE, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — Fayette County parents are accused of abusing their 6-year-old daughter, starving her, beating her and keeping her zip-tied in a dog crate.
Jacob Weight and Mimi Frost of Brownsville were arrested Tuesday on charges of aggravated assault, strangulation, endangering the welfare of children and simple assault, Pennsylvania State Police announced on Tuesday.
Police said their investigation began after they were dispatched to a home on Sheridan Avenue on Jan. 7 for reports of an unresponsive 6-year-old girl. When troopers arrived, they said they found deplorable conditions, with trash, urine and feces from the eight dogs living there throughout the house.
After conducting interviews with all the kids in the home, police said they learned the girl was being held in a dog crate and was beat multiple times.
The criminal complaint details the allegations of abuse, with one teenager telling investigators that Frost put the girl in the dog kennel naked and left her there overnight. There was no heat in the house, only space heaters, the teenager said. When the family left the house, the teenager said Frost zip-tied the girl’s hands and feet together and locked the kennel. The teenager also told police that Frost wouldn’t feed the girl for days at a time.
According to the criminal complaint, the victim told a therapist that she slept every night in the dog cage and ate dog food. She told the therapist that Weight beat her and shot her in the legs with a BB gun. The therapist reported to police that the victim said the abuse had been happening for a long time.
The victim’s medical reports showed she had multiple skin abrasions, extensive bruising and open sores. When she went to the hospital, doctors said she had severe hypothermia. Police said the victim hadn’t had routine pediatric care in three years and had been withheld from school.
“It is stated multiple times in the report that she could have died as a result of this egregious abuse and neglect and if she returns to her current environment, she is highly likely to die of abuse and neglect,” police wrote in the criminal complaint.
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