Atlanta Couple Accused Of Keeping 4 Children Captive For 6 Years, Denying Them Food, Showers & Medical Care

Atlanta Couple Accused Of Keeping 4 Children Captive For 6 Years, Denying Them Food, Showers & Medical Care

Trigger Warning

Two #Atlanta residents, Keisha Epps, 51, and Tamra Stewart, 37, have been arrested and charged in #Florida after authorities say they kept four children confined inside the cab of a tractor-trailer for roughly six years while traveling routes between Miami, Orlando and Atlanta. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the charges at a news conference Tuesday (Sept. 1), saying the two boys and two girls — who were between five and nine years old when the alleged abu$e began — were denied food, hygiene, schooling and medical care. Two of the children were found with untreated burns that left permanent scarring.
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According to Uthmeier, Stewart is accused of s3xually abusing the girls, while the boys, who witnessed the abu$e, were physically beaten whenever they confronted Stewart or reported it to Epps. Stewart has reportedly admitted to three counts of s3xual battery against one of the girls, including one incident in Orlando. Describing the conditions the children endured, Uthmeier said, “The evidence shows that the truck would at times hit a truck station where the adults would go to the restroom, they might take a shower, but they would leave these kids locked in this rolling dungeon.” In a statement, he added, “These children were trapped in a rolling prison and abu$ed by the adults who were supposed to protect them. Florida has zero tolerance for anyone who preys on children. We will seek the maximum punishment under the law.”
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Stewart faces two counts each of s3xual battery, lewd and lascivious mole$tation of a child under 12, battery of a child, child neglect without great bodily harm, and child neglect causing permanent disfigurement. Epps faces the same counts, minus s3xual battery being replaced with equivalent charges, plus four counts of failing to report child abu$e. Officials say the investigation is ongoing and additional charges may follow.