Two mothers arrested for trapping girls in basement where one survived by eating her own hair: report

Two Edmonton mothers have been charged with attempted murder, unlawful confinement and abandonment after a babysitter contacted police saying she found two small children with broken bones barricaded in the basement.

Investigators state that one of them -- a 3-year-old -- may have been staying alive by eating her own hair.

According to the report by the CBC, the two mothers, identified only as JL, age 24, and AM, 23, were taken into custody after a newly hired babysitter reported the horrific scene she discovered when she broke into the blocked-off basement in December.

Edmonton police Chief Rod Knecht explained that the release of the report containing what investigators found is "one to pay attention to. I do have the details. And it's very disturbing."

The report states the babysitter was hired for an evening to watch over JL's  two young daughters, ages 6 and 3, and AM's three children: ages 2, 3 and 5.

According to the babysitter, she was only to worry about the three children that she would find upstairs, and to not bother with the two in the basement.

After checking on the three upstairs -- who the babysitter said looked malnourished -- she immediately went to see the two in the basement only to find the door blocked by a piece of furniture.

Pushing it out of the way, she entered the darkened room and found the two small children trapped inside two closed furniture boxes, with the the six-year-old  unconscious.

Following a 911 call, both girls were transported by ambulance to hospital, where the older girl spent days in intensive care.

According to the report, hospital officials described both girls as having broken bones and that the three-year-old had likely been eating her own hair which had been found in her stomach.

"I have to get over the shock of what actually occurred," explained psychologist Les Block when told of the details. "The shock of these children being placed in such horrific circumstances has to be put to the side in order to try to make sense of what's going to be happening to them now and into the future."

Investigators are also looking at abuse the upstairs children received, with the report stating that beatings with a belt may have occurred.

The two women will appear in court on Monday.

You can read more details here.