Discovery of Severe Child Neglect

• 🚨 A 6-year-old boy was found running unsupervised across a heavily trafficked Miami Beach street, prompting a 911 call.
• 🏠 Police followed the child to his apartment, where they discovered five children, aged 6 to 12, living in dire conditions.
• ⚠️ The children were found emaciated and starving, with the eldest child reporting their last meal was two days prior.

Unacceptable Living Environment

• 🏚️ The apartment lacked electricity for two months, had a clogged toilet overflowing with feces, and a strong, pervasive odor.
• 👕 Children wore dirty, ill-fitting clothes and shared a single full-size bed, with parents not washing clothes for weeks.
• 🚫 There was no functioning stove and no food in the refrigerator, leaving the children without basic necessities.

Parents' Actions and Justifications

• 🍽️ Parents, Azra Nikocevic and Sanel Canovic, were dining out at restaurants while their children were left at home to starve.
• 💬 The mother claimed she was "too focused on her job" and that the children were not hungry or were picky eaters, refusing provided food.
• 💸 Occasionally, parents left $20 for five children to buy fast food, which was insufficient and infrequent; one child sold a cell phone for food.

Chronic Neglect and Prior History

• 🩺 A forensic pathologist indicated it would take 2-3 weeks of starvation for a child's bones to become visible, highlighting the chronic nature of the neglect.
• 🚨 Investigators revealed the parents had a prior child neglect case in New York, where children were temporarily removed before the family relocated to Miami.
• 💰 Despite the mother earning $1,400 a week and both parents having jobs, they failed to provide basic food and shelter.

Legal Consequences

• ⚖️ The parents were arrested and charged with felony child neglect for all five counts.
• 🚪 They were released on a $2,500 bond for one count and released on their own recognizance (ROR) for the others.
• 🗣️ The mother stated her intention to fight to regain custody of her children.