INDIANAPOLIS -- An autistic boy found living in filthy conditions had only been fed chocolate and had never been to school, police said.

Sandra Helmick, 48, was arrested Tuesday at a home in the 1100 block of Sharon Avenue in which she and her 8-year-old son were staying, 6News' Ericka Flye reported.

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Images From Inside Home

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Paul Roberts, who owns the home, disagreed with officers' contention that conditions there were deplorable.

Officers said they found a floor littered with trash and clothes; a bed covered in pet hair, feces and urine; and a dead bird with an open wound on the floor.

"They said they couldn't believe that anybody could actually live here," said Indianapolis Metro police Sgt. Paul Thompson.

When 6News visited the home Tuesday evening, there was an almost unbearable odor, even from the outside.

"Well, it's rough," Roberts said when asked about the smell. "I moved."

Roberts told 6News that he allowed Helmick to stay there with the child. Child protection employees called police to the home Tuesday when Helmick refused to let them in, Flye reported.

Officers burst into the home and found Helmick and her son huddled together in a bedroom, police said.

According to officers, there were broken windows, no working plumbing and hardly any food. What was in the refrigerator was spoiled.

Helmick told officers that her son ate only chocolate pudding, chocolate cake and drank chocolate milk.

Authorities said the boy's teeth were rotten, and that he had never been to a doctor or to school.

Neighbor Deborah Reas told 6News that Helmick was very protective of her special-needs son.

"She felt like other kids would make fun of him if he went to school with other kids," Reas said.

Reas added that she had never seen any signs of child neglect. Child Protective Services officials said it's common that people just don't want to get involved.

"Bottom line is, if you don't get involved, kids fall through the cracks," said Rhonda Allen, of the Department of Child Services.

Helmick's son was taken into the custody of Child Protective Services.

A 24-hour hot line is available to anyone who suspects child neglect or abuse -- 800-800-5556.