Tragedy struck a Tempe neighborhood following the shocking discovery of a 13-year-old girl who was kept in cruel confinement and consequently died in the hospital. According to FOX 10 Phoenix, the mother, Jami Hodges, 33, and grandmother, Virginia Lujan, 55, face child abuse charges after the girl was found with visible injuries. Tempe Police uncovered what was described as a “makeshift cage” in the search of the home.
On Tuesday, emergency services hurried the victim to the hospital after being found unresponsive; sadly, she was pronounced dead the next morning. Facing police custody, Lujan claimed the child, who had been diagnosed with Myoclonic Atonic Epilepsy since the age of three, had fallen days earlier, as 12News reported. Lujan and Hodges both admitted the cage was utilized to “maintain control” over the child.
Furthermore, detectives learned that Hodges, despite residing temporarily in the same household, infrequently saw her daughter and acknowledged to police her knowledge of the girl’s confinement. Chief Ken McCoy of the Tempe Police Department conveyed the collective grief and determination for justice, stating, “No child should ever have to endure suffering. We are committed to uncovering the truth and seeking justice on her behalf,” as per FOX 10 Phoenix…