The 24-year-old mother of two youngsters found abandoned in a cave on Thursday has been arrested and charged with endangerment.
Missouri police investigating a possible car theft operation at an underground storage-complex in Kansas City instead discovered Brittaney Mugrauer’s shoeless, starving 4-year-old and 6-year-old.
The two were apparently being forced to live there by their neglectful parent who kept them confined inside an 8x10-foot shipping crate, among garbage and broken machinery.
It’s estimated they may have spent close to a week in the damp cave, although the actual length of time and circumstances of their homelessness is still being investigated.
Responding officers said they observed at least one of the kids attempting to eat dried noodles with dirt, and that neither victim had access to water or was properly clothed.
Both were transported to a local hospital where they are reportedly in good condition today. Their mother has since been charged with two separate counts of endangering the welfare of a minor.
It’s not known who -- or where -- the father of the cave children is, or if he too will face prosecution.
