By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-01-23 22:27:01 | Updated at 2025-01-24 01:26:29
3 hours ago
A teenage girl in Arizona died after she was forced to live in a cage by her grandmother and her mother.
Tempe Police responded to a 911 call from Virginia Lujan just before 9:00 pm on Tuesday.
Lujan said her granddaughter, Melanie, wasn't breathing and authorities rushed to provide life-saving care.
She was transported to a local hospital and after hours of treatment, she tragically died on Wednesday morning. It's unclear what caused her to be unresponsive but police said they were awaiting an autopsy to show her cause of death.
The teenager's body was covered in bruises and sores, according to Tempe police. She had a cognitive delay with the mental capacity of a three-year-old.
Melanie's horrific death prompted a search of the home. Police Chief Kenneth McCoy said that the conditions she was living in were 'horrible.'
She was being held in a 'makeshift cage' that was littered with feces. Lujan and Melanie's mother, Jami Hodges' told police they kept her in the cage to 'maintain control of her.'
Police said the cage resembled a bunk bed without the lower half. Bars and baby cages surrounded the bed to entrap Melanie.
Police described the home Melanie was living in as 'horrible'
Virginia Lujan is in custody for child abuse after her granddaughter died in her care
'The home was very disorderly. It was not very clean. It just was very deplorable conditions, to say the least,' Tempe Police Public Information Officer Jessica Ells said.
Hodges and her five children were staying with Lujan, four of which were under the grandmother's care.
When questioned about Melanie's bruises, Lujan told officers that she had fallen down the stairs on Sunday night.
Lujan claimed that she decided not to seek medical care for her granddaughter because she 'believed the girl would be fine,' according to Tempe Police.
Hodges told police that she didn't regularly see her daughter and had no idea that she fell a few days before her death.
'The tragic loss of a child is a profound reminder of our shared responsibility to protect the most vulnerable in our community,' Chief McCoy said at a press conference.
'Investigations like this demand meticulous attention to detail and sensitivity to the emotional toll it takes on everyone involved.'
Lujan and Hodges were both arrested on felony charges of child abuse. Lujan is in custody and Hodges was released pending charges. Police said that as they continue to investigate, homicide charges may be on the table.
Police Chief Kenneth McCoy said the department would continue to work to find justice for Melanie
The other four children in the home were taken by the Department of Child Services. According to police, none of the children in the home were attending school. The youngest child is two years old, while the oldest is 15.
The investigation into Melanie's death is ongoing. Officer Ells said that police have started to interview neighbors to determine the extent of abuse in the home.
'These specific calls are just heartbreaking. These are the calls you never want to have to go on,' Officer Ells said.
She added that officers would continue to work to give a voice to Melanie and seek justice for her death.
