Overview
- A bystander reported cries at a StorSafe facility near N. 27th St. and W. Silver Spring Dr., and firefighters cut a padlock to free children ages 9 to 2 months.
- The storage unit lacked running water and electricity and contained a sofa, a bare mattress and a bucket used for waste, with a “putrid” odor noted in the complaint.
- Officers found the parents sleeping in an SUV with the family dog, and the couple told police they had been homeless for several weeks.
- Charles Dupriest, 33, and Azyia Zielinski, 26, face multiple child-neglect charges, and Dupriest is additionally charged with illegal firearm possession.
- The couple made initial court appearances and are being held on bond as the Milwaukee County District Attorney evaluates next steps in the active neglect investigation.