Mother of 5 charged with deprivation of minors

An Augusta woman was arrested Monday after her five children were found to be living in deplorable conditions.

Crystal Hill, 31, was charged with five counts of deprivation of a minor. According to arrest warrants, a Richmond County deputy found the apartment in the 1400 block of Brown Street filthy, with no running water and a toilet filled with feces.

According to the incident report, the deputy was flagged down by the owner of the duplex apartment in reference to squatters living there. The owner told deputies the previous tenant had moved out and left Hill in the apartment with five children and no running water.

The previous tenant told deputies he thought that his rent was paid until May 1 and that Hill could stay there with her children until she moved May 1. According to the incident report, the tenant is Hill's boyfriend. He told Hill there was no running water in the apartment, which is why he moved out.

The deputy knocked several times at the apartment, but nobody answered the door. Hill returned home shortly after and opened the door. The previous tenant gave the deputy permission to inspect the apartment, according to the report.

The deputy found dried-up food, pots and pans with old food in them, a trash can overflowing with food and a foul smell, and food and trash on the floor, according to the report. The deputy also found a small electric fan – with no safety front cover – running with the blades exposed.

According to the report, feces was piled high in the waterless toilet bowl. Hill told deputies she had filled the toilet tank with water from jugs to flush the toilet, since the apartment had no running water.

A code enforcement officer condemned the structure for occupancy, noting that none of the windows could be opened and no smoke detectors were found, according to the report.

The five children were divided by a Division of Family and Children Services worker among Hill's mother and a friend, according to the report. Hill is being held at the Charles B. Webster Detention Center.

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