Buffalo woman charged after toddler found in feces-covered cage
A Buffalo woman is facing charges after her 2-year-old son was found in a makeshift cage covered in feces, according to New York State Police.
Troopers announced this week that Naesha R. Lumpkin, 24, was charged with child endangerment after troopers went to her Chadduck Avenue home to execute a felony warrant on an unrelated crime on Feb. 8. While at the home, troopers found a 2-year-old boy inside the makeshift cage - a playpen covered by a portion of a crib that was tied down on three sides, preventing the toddler from exiting, according to State Police.
The cage and boy were covered in fecal matter and there was feces on the walls. The child and bedding were also soaked in urine, troopers said.
Trooper James O'Callaghan told a Buffalo television station that bones from chicken wings were found near the boy and in and around the makeshift cage.
Investigators on scene contacted Erie County Child Protective Services. The boy was taken to Oishei’s Children’s Hospital in Buffalo to be evaluated. Doctors determined that the boy had suffered bruises on his face and body and two fractured ribs. Doctors estimated that the ribs were broken 10 to 14 days before the medical evaluation in February, troopers said.
Lumpkin told troopers that the boy fell down the stairs sometime between late December 2023 and early January, State Police said in a news release. Lumpkin told troopers that the boy was crying as a result of the fall, but that she did not seek professional medical assistance.
The Erie County District Attorney’s Office investigated the case said that no additional charges are pending. O'Callaghan told WKBW News that troopers announced the February incident this week after they spent months trying to connect Lumpkin to the injuries her son suffered but have not been able to do so.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Naesha Lumpkin charged after toddler found in feces-covered cage
