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LORAIN, Ohio – Lorain police have arrested a mom who they said left her five young children in deplorable conditions while she “went to the store.”

Authorities received the child welfare call on Colorado Avenue around 2:50 p.m. from a concerned neighbor who saw the mother leave without her kids.

Upon arrival, officers found the front door open and walked inside. A 17-year-old living in the duplex next door was keeping an eye on the kids, but admitted he had no idea how to care for young children.

Once inside, officers found 1-year-old twins, both named Michael Boyer, a 4-year-old girl, Jocelyn, a 3-year-old boy, also named Michael, and a 2-year-old giril, Jemma.

While inside, officers noticed an overwhelming smell of garbage, foul odor and dirty diapers.

Jocelyn was wearing an extremely dirty shirt and Jemma was completely naked and soaking wet., police reported Michael, 3, was without a diaper and wore only a soaking wet T-shirt.

Officers then checked the twins’ diapers, confirming they had not been changed for several hours.

The home was also said to be covered in filth. Clothes were in piles along the staircase, the bathroom floor was covered with water and the bathtub was filled with extremely dirty water and at a dangerous level.

Lorain police said the children could have easily drowned.

The bathtub also had food particles floating around in it, the bedrooms were cluttered with garbage, and none of the rooms had beds. Instead, mattresses were found lying around the house.

In the kitchen, the freezer was bare and the only food found in the refrigerator was moldy lasagna and four unopened cans of Bud Light beer, police said. The kitchen sink was full of dirty dishes, including knives within reach of the young kids.

The children told police they hadn’t eaten all day, but all of them appeared to be unharmed and were not in need of medical care.

Around 3:03 p.m., Osiris Boyer arrived home from the store, without groceries. She admitted not really knowing her neighbor, but asked him to watch her children anyway. Lorain police said she didn’t seem concerned with her kids being left in the conditions.

Boyer’s roommate, Samantha James, told police she and Boyer picked up James’s boyfriend together and did not go to the store.

Osiris Boyer was arrested and charged with five counts of endangering children. Officers contacted the children’s father who picked them all up.

The couple is in the middle of a divorce.

Lorain County Children Services was notified of the incident. Police will check in on the kid’s at the father’s home.

Article Courtesy of WEWS NewsChannel 5