The dilapidated home where authorities say they removed 16 children and arrested four adults remains blocked off by crime scene tape on Wednesday, July 1, 2026 in Hamden, Ohio. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth)

By The Canadian Press

Children found in ‘deplorable’ Ohio home were part of same family

Jul 1, 2026 | 10:50 AM

HAMDEN, Ohio (AP) — The 16 children found living in “deplorable” conditions inside a small, dilapidated rural Ohio home are part of the same family, officials said Wednesday.

Authorities arrested four adults Tuesday on felony child endangerment charges after finding the children in the home. Some were in dire need of medical treatment, authorities said.

Vinton County prosecuting attorney William Archer said the four adults were charged with second-degree felony child endangering because it involves “serious physical harm.”

Gary Siders Jr., Gary Siders Sr., Christina Siders and Elizabeth Siders appeared in court Wednesday where a judge entered not guilty pleas on their behalf.. They have not yet been assigned lawyers.

Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson said Wednesday that the conditions inside the house in the tiny village of Hamden were almost indescribable, saying it “really looked third world.”

Nighttime construction on Hwy 3 in Lethbridge starts April 17

Apr 17, 2025

SASHA launches #BuyABed fundraiser to support vulnerable Lethbridge residents

Apr 04, 2025

$20K grants available: TELUS STORYHIVE Pan-Asian Edition opens applications April 1

Mar 18, 2025

“It’s just almost beyond comprehension,” he said without providing details about what was inside.

It appeared that the children spent most of their time in just one room for much of the four years they lived there, Wilson said.

The house sits on a road tucked away alongside a steep railroad embankment, where tracks carry rumbling trains through Hamden. On Wednesday, its doors and windows stood open to the 94-degree Fahrenheit (34-degree Celsius) heat. A tangle of discarded children’s items — two busted bicycles, a plastic play table, a beach pail and two infant carriers — stood in a pile in the yard.

The Ohio Bureau of Investigation and local sheriff’s department searched the home on Tuesday.

The children ranged in age from 1 1/2 years to 18 years old and included both boys and girls, officials said. Seven were transported to hospitals in Columbus and two were flown by helicopters.

Hamden has a population of less than 1,000 people and is about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southeast of Columbus.

___

Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio.

Julie Carr Smyth And John Seewer, The Associated Press

by The Canadian Press

Children found in ‘deplorable’ Ohio home were part of same family

What's Happening