Mom and grandma charged after naked boy with bound hands and covered in bruises runs into California grocery store for help
The child and his sister have been placed with child protective services
A California mother and grandmother are in custody after a teenage boy ran into a grocery store bound and naked.
Employees at the Cost Less grocery store in Ceres, about 95 miles from San Francisco, were stunned when a 15-year-old child ran in around 1:39 p.m. on Thursday. The child, who is autistic, was bound at the wrists, the Ceres Police Department said. Grocery store managers described the child as nonverbal and said he was not communicating.
Multiple visible injuries suggested the child may have also been bound at the ankles. Emergency personnel transported the teenager to a nearby hospital for treatment.
The teenager’s mother, Leandra Renteria, 36, came to the grocery store searching for her son. That’s how police encountered her. Through the investigation process, authorities discovered she had another autistic child, a 12-year-old girl, living at the family’s residence. Police conducted a welfare check and found the girl safe in the home.
However, the home was in poor condition, officials said, noting they did not have a history of responding to the address.
Renteria, Gary Wilson, 58, and Lenore Wilson, 54, were arrested for child abuse and neglect and booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center. It’s not clear what the Wilsons’ connection is to the case. Lenore Wilson is Renteria’s mother and Gary Wilson is her husband, The Modesto Bee reported.
A county inmate search did not yield results for the suspects. The Independent has emailed the sheriff’s office for additional information.
Meanwhile, both children have been placed in Child Protective Services.
Grocery store Director Del Ambris told the outlet he was proud of how his employees handled the situation.
“Rather than dwell on what happened to this kid, let’s look at what’s going to happen to this kid,” he said. “The bad part of his life, hopefully, now is changing.”