New details have emerged in the 𝓈𝒽𝓸𝒸𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 case of 16 children rescued from a squalid Ohio home, revealing that the mother once gave birth to conjoined twins who tragically passed away just hours after delivery.
State records obtained by WOWK 13 show that Elizabeth Siders, 33, delivered twin daughters Bailey Lee and Faith Lee Siders at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus on Nov. 20, 2022. The babies were born at just 24 weeks with thoracopagus, a condition where their faces and chests were fused together. According to the documents, the infants died from natural causes later that same day.
This heartbreaking revelation comes days after Elizabeth, her husband Gary Siders Jr., and his parents Gary Siders Sr. and Christina Siders were arrested. Authorities found 16 children, ages 1 to 18, living in a single 12-by-12 room covered in human waste at the family’s Vinton County home.
Officials described the conditions as deplorable and third-world, noting that local livestock lived better than the kids. The children were never enrolled in school, can barely communicate, and some cannot speak at all, according to investigators. The oldest child, an 18-year-old, is reportedly developmentally disabled and unable to write her name.
After the rescue, the kids were taken to hospitals across Ohio, with some in serious condition. Two were airlifted to trauma centers, and at least one needed to be intubated, officials said.
The children’s uncle, Ronnie Fletcher, told WOWK 13 that the extended family was horrified and had no idea about the alleged 𝓪𝓫𝓾𝓼𝓮. He said they believed the couple had around 10 kids, not 16, and would have stepped in if they had known.
Fletcher also revealed that Elizabeth married Gary Jr. in 2008 when she was just 15 and he was 18, noting she had a difficult home life and sought refuge with his family. Their oldest child was reportedly born two months after the wedding.
Court records list the children’s ages as 18, 16, 15, 14, 13, 11, 10, 8, 6, 5, plus sets of 4-year-old, 2-year-old, and 1-year-old twins. All four defendants pleaded not guilty to 16 counts of child endangerment and face up to 192 years in prison if convicted.
As the community grapples with this disturbing case, one question lingers: how did this go unnoticed for so long?
