A Fort Pierce couple were arrested on child abuse charges after an 11-year-old girl told investigators her stepmother makes her stay outside all day and won't let her inside to use the bathroom or shower. Juan and Joanna Moreno were arrested on Saturday. The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office said deputies came to their home after someone called 911 and hung up.
According to the arrest report, Juan Moreno's daughter told deputies her stepmother doesn't let her inside while her father is at work, and she is made to use the bathroom outside and wash her own clothes in a bucket that is kept in her outdoor shower. The girl told deputies she isn't allowed to sleep in a bed or have any sheets at night. Neighbours said they always saw the girl working.
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"You didn't suspect anything," Cindi Gomez said. "You just come by and you saw her outside all of the time, working. She was always doing yard work or walking her dogs." The report said deputies smelled a strong odour of urine close to the fence and saw faeces on the ground. Deputies noted that the girl was dirty, had body odour and unkempt hair cut short like a boy's haircut. "For the longest time I thought it was a little boy," neighbour John Ehlert said.
The report said her two younger stepsisters were clean, well dressed and had long, brushed hair. Deputies said the girl was afraid to be left alone with her stepmother, whom the girl said hits and throws things at her, once with a shoe, causing a gash on her head. "I've never even see the little girl smile," neighbour April Jordan said. "When she's home, she's dressed like rags, and it's like a Cinderella story."
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