The Daily Times

A Townsend man was arrested Wednesday for abuse and neglect of his children since August of last year, according to a Blount County Sheriff’s Office report.

While conducting a warrant investigation, deputies arrested Tomas Martinez-Vences, 30, at the Royal Extended Stay on Alcoa Highway. He was taken into custody without incident.

Martinez-Vences was accused of neglecting and abusing his children after deputies responded to a welfare check on Aug. 12, 2011.

According to the Sheriff’s Office report, as the deputy on the scene opened his patrol car door, a strong odor came from the home on Boat Gunnel Road, he noticed large holes in the exterior walls, and the home’s sewer pipe ran on top of the ground.

Contact was made with Martinez-Vences’ oldest child, who is 11, who said that he and his 6-year-old sister were sick. The oldest child opened the front door and there was an unbearable odor, with the plywood floor covered with fecal material in the living room.

The officer told the child that their school staff was worried about them after missing several days of school. The oldest child said his younger sister had fallen and hit her head the day before. The deputy asked to talk to the sister.

As the oldest child headed back toward the bedroom, the deputy asked if his parents were home and if he could talk with them. The child said they were home alone and were expecting their father to be home later that evening from work.

Mother in jail

The officer then asked the oldest child where his mother was, and the child was under the impression that she was hospitalized. The deputy then discovered that their mother was incarcerated.

After discovering a third child, a 3-year-old boy, the deputy asked the little girl where her injury was on her head and could not see any visible marks where she was pointing. The oldest child said his sister was taken to the hospital the previous day.

Upon inspecting the home, the deputy found the living conditions unbearable, with no kitchen cabinets, kitchen sink and countertop.

The deputy asked the children what they were eating for dinner, and the little girl ran to the refrigerator, opened the freezer and pointed to three frozen dinners, while the rest of the freezer was empty. She opened the refrigerator and there were only empty deli meat containers.

DCS investigates

An employee with the Department of Children’s Services (DCS) asked the older child to show him around the home, where the children’s bedroom only had one twin mattress, which was dirty and covered with roaches. All three children slept on the mattress.

The three children were dirty and appeared not to have bathed in days, according to the report. DCS took the children into custody and transported them to the Children’s Advocacy Center.

Meanwhile, Martinez-Vences is being held in the Blount County Detention Facility on $10,000 bond pending a 9 a.m. court date today in Blount County General Sessions Court.

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