CARTHAGE, Mo. — A Carthage woman was charged with endangering the welfare of a child in the second degree, a misdemeanor, after allegedly leaving her 5 to 6-year-old son naked for days and sometimes leaving him alone while she walked around the neighborhood.
The Carthage Police Department was called to a home in the 300 block of N. Garrison Tuesday after a neighbor saw both Rainel Christine Rozik (DOB 1979) and the child naked in the backyard, according to the probable cause statement. The neighbor told police he thought Rozik had been using drugs.
From the probable cause statement:
When approaching the open door of the residence I observed the kitchen to be trashed and it looked like there had been some kind of disturbance.
Due to not knowing where the naked Juvenile and Rozik were, the door being wide open, and the state of which the yard and house were in, we decided to make entry to the residence to see if anybody was inside and to see if they were okay.
Officers made clear verbal announcements prior to entering with no response.
The house was a complete mess, I observed dirty dishes filling both sides of the sink, ants crawling all over the place, a kitchen knife in a pan on the stove, cat food spilled all over the kitchen floor, a cork screw bottle opener on the floor in the living room, sex toys in the single bedroom that appears to be shared by J1 and Rozik.
Officers contacted Rozik and J1 in the 400 block of W. Vine St. J1 ran into the roadway when I pulled up and Rozik did not attempt to stop him or even seem to notice. J1 was still naked, covered in bug bites, and had what appeared to be tape and gauze around his left ankle. J1 also appeared to be skinny for his age.
Rozik appeared to be out of touch with reality, her pupils were constricted, her eyes were glassy, Rozik stumbled as she stood up and walked.
Rozik made claims of having a second child a couple months old that went to the lake with a neighbor, but there was no evidence to support that. Rozik was very uncooperative with officers and would be cursing at J1 one-minute then playing with J1 another.
I later contacted the neighbor (W2), who advised Rozik did not have any other juvenile children. W2 also advised on 05/13/2024 between 1:00 P.M and 2:00 P.M. she went over to Rozik’s to check on her and contacted J1 naked and alone locked inside the residence. J1 advised W2 that Rozik went on a walk and had been gone all day. W2 advised Rozik goes on walks and leaves J1 alone in the residence.
W2 advised she sees J1 almost every day and he has been naked for days. W2 believes Rozik is using drugs.
Bond was set at $2,500 cash or surety. Rozik is not to have any contact with anyone under age 18.
Originally appeared on The Turner Report
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