A southern Indiana mother and her now-ex-boyfriend are behind bars accused of abusing her young sons.
Investigators said the abuse went on for months until someone who had been inside the couple's home in Austin, Indiana contacted authorities.
Matthew Mosier, 37, and Hannah Graves, 28, are facing several charges.
People interviewed by police during the course of the investigation said they witnessed the abuse of 4- and 7-year-old boys. Those people said the children begged for food and were hit when they did. One child even ate from a dog bowl, investigators said.
Investigators said people reported seeing the children slapped and beaten, and the pair laughed while doing so.
"This is one of those cases that there's really no description: heinous, despicable, disgusting, it's actually very sad for the children. This is one of those cases where it flat out makes you mad," Sheriff Jerry Goodin said.
When Graves was interviewed, she said Mosier hit one of the children so hard over the head with a cutting board that it broke.
Mosier admitted to police that he put the 7-year-old in a portable crib, zip-tied him and left him there from 7 p.m. to 11 a.m. the next day.
A family friend also told police that same child was put in a diaper, tied to a chair with a belt, and left there for 12 or more hours.
The children are now staying with other family members.
Indiana mother, ex-boyfriend accused of 'heinous' abuse against her children
A southern Indiana mother and her now-ex-boyfriend are behind bars accused of abusing her young sons.
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