A couple in Florida have been arrested after their two young children were found in makeshift cages.
Dustin Huff, 35, and Yurui Xie, 31, were charged with child abuse and child neglect after police found their six-year-old and two-year-old in cages made out of bedframes whenever the children were not at school.
They were arrested on 8 December in Gainesville, accused of locking their two children in the cages at night and when they were not at home.
The investigation began when the six-year-old child told his teacher that he did not want to go home because his dad built a cage that he would be locked into while his mother was at work, according to an arrest report obtained by WCJB.
Officials from the Department of Children and Families investigated the couple’s home and found the wooden bedframe cage, along with another makeshift cage in the closet of the master bedroom, supposedly used for the two-year-old child.
Both cages allegedly had rails and springs that could cause harm to the children if they moved inside, the outlet reported.
The couple allegedly would leave their six-year-old in the house alone, and told investigators the cage had been in the child’s room for a year, according to the arrest report.
Both Mr Huff and Ms Xie worked for the University of Florida, who confirmed to the outlet that they are on administrative leave.
A page on the university’s website, that has now been removed, said Ms Xie had worked for the university since 2019 as the Plant Pathology Department’s safety manager, according to WCJB.
Another removed page states that Mr Huff has worked there since 2017 as a biological scientist.
Both parents are being held at the Alachua County Jail, each on a $6,000 bond.
The Independent has contacted Alachua County Sheriff's Office for further information.
