HAMILTON - The basement of a home where two boys were found living in squalor was a "disturbing" scene that reeked so badly of urine and feces that officers had a difficult time breathing and even seeing, Hamilton police said Thursday.
The 35-year-old father, 27-year-old mother and 60-year-old grandmother of the two boys, aged two and five, are facing charges of forcible confinement.
Police received a 911 call on April 2 to go to the home, but charges weren't laid until late Tuesday.
The grandmother also faces an assault charge, and Hamilton police say they expect more charges to be laid against the three, who all have court dates in May.
Six children between the ages of two and 13 lived in the home in Stoney Creek, east of Hamilton, and all have been placed in the care of the Children's Aid Society.
"The kids have been checked medically and they're all clear," said Det.-Sgt. Chris Kiriakopoulos.
He said this is a case in which good police work on the part of the two responding officers may have been the difference between life and death.
"They did their work in investigating the unknown 911 call from the house, and if they had not have, the children would have been missed and still be in the circumstances that we found them in."
Police declined to say who made the 911 call.
