LAND-O-LAKES, FLA. — A Land O' Lakes woman was charged with three counts of child neglect after deputies said she left her three children alone in an apartment without power and with only $3 for food, officials said.
Heather Wizbicki, 35, was arrested by the Pasco County Sheriff's Office (PCSO).
According to an arrest report, Wizbicki left her three children, ages 14, 13 and 9, alone in their apartment on Sept. 21 after the electricity had been shut off Sept. 17. Deputies said she left no food, little money and no adult supervision. The report also stated there was no running water.
Investigators found feces on the floor, rotten food stored in multiple bags, trash throughout the apartment and a foul odor.
"The smell caused the children to have a hard time breathing, even with all the windows open," the PCSO report stated. "The apartment was in an unlivable condition for anyone to continue to reside in."
Wizbicki briefly returned to the apartment on Sept. 24 to collect clothing for herself and left $3 for all three children to buy food, according to the report.
Deputies said the children did not have access to phones or contact with family members.
"There were multiple days where the children were deprived of food and went hungry," the report stated.
A neighbor discovered the children on Sept. 28 and contacted authorities, according to the report.
Deputies later learned Wizbicki was being held in the Pasco County Jail after being arrested on unrelated drug charges.
She was charged with three counts of child neglect.
Wizbicki was also charged with animal abandonment after deputies said she left a cat in the apartment without food or water.
The Florida Department of Children and Families was notified and responded to the scene.
'My heart breaks': Woman describes helping injured students after deadly school bus crash in Polk County
A woman on her way to work Monday morning found herself helping injured Winter Haven High School students after a school bus crash that killed two people.
