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Child found covered in feces at Columbus mall playground; grandmother arrested

Posted at 12:34 PM, Jan 23, 2017
and last updated 2017-01-24 00:19:57-05

COLUMBUS, Ind. -- A Columbus woman was arrested Sunday afternoon when her 2-year-old grandson was found wandering around an indoor playground covered in feces.

Around 4:40 p.m. Sunday, Columbus police were called to the Commons Mall playground to check on a 2-year-old child playing on the playground, apparently without supervision.

The woman who called police said she checked with all of the adults in the area to try to find a parent or guardian, but couldn't locate one. She and another adult then changed the child's diaper while they waited for police to arrive.

The child was then taken to the Columbus Police Department while police worked to find a guardian.

Shortly after 5:30 p.m., the child's grandmother, Brenda J. Fox, arrived at the police department. Fox reportedly said she never saw police at the playground and no one approached her about her grandchild.

During the conversation, police said they noticed Fox appeared to be under the influence of narcotics.

Fox was taken into custody on preliminary charges of neglect of a dependent.

The child was released to the custody of his parents.