Relatives of the 16 'almost feral' children found in Ohio house of horrors had no clue so many kids were living inside

Key Points:

• Sixteen children, aged 1 to 18, were rescued from a feces-filled, cramped 12-by-12 room in a Vinton County, Ohio home, where they had lived in squalor and isolation for at least four years; grandparents Gary Sr. and Christina Siders, their son Gary Jr., and his wife Elizabeth were arrested.
• Family members were unaware there were as many as 16 children living in the house, believing there were only about 10, and expressed horror and concern upon learning the full extent of the situation through news reports.
• The children, some of whom cannot speak or communicate properly and have never been enrolled in school, were taken to hospitals, with several in serious condition; the oldest child is developmentally disabled.
• Relatives said the family had been estranged for years, with limited contact, and insisted they would have intervened had they known about the abuse; the defendants have pleaded not guilty to 16 counts of child endangerment.
• If convicted, each defendant faces up to 192 years in prison; court hearings are scheduled for mid-July, and authorities continue to investigate the children's parentage and circumstances.