Girl, 6, Was Chained to Bed for 5 Years in Norco Home, Police Say : Children: The malnourished victim was found in a filthy room and is in serious condition. Her mother and grandfather were arrested on felony charges.

A 6-year-old girl who had been chained to her bed for five years in a room filled with trash was found Tuesday by Riverside County sheriff’s deputies, authorities said.

The girl was emaciated, could not talk and communicated with moans and whimpers, Sheriff’s Sgt. Perri Feinstein-Portales said.

She was taken to Loma Linda University Medical Center for treatment of malnutrition and for physical and mental examinations, Feinstein-Portales said. She is in serious condition.

“The room was so filthy that when I stood at the window I gagged,” Feinstein-Portales said. “There was trash everywhere and soiled bedding and human waste everywhere. Baby powder was dumped all over the room to mask the smell.”

The girl’s mother, Cindy Sue Topper, told deputies that her daughter had been chained to the bed since she was 1.

Topper, 39, and the girl’s grandfather, Loren Bess, 76, were booked Tuesday night on suspicion of felony child endangering. They could face felony charges, authorities said.

The child lived with her mother at Bess’ house in the 1500 block of Elm Street in a rural area of Norco.

“Their house was on a street of nicely kept homes with nicely manicured lawns,” Feinstein-Portales said. “They had the one rundown house on the street.”

An anonymous caller contacted the Sheriff’s Department and reported they were concerned about a child’s welfare. The caller said a mother in the neighborhood claimed that her daughter attended school, but none of the neighbors had seen the child for two years.

Deputies, who had only the street name but not an address, searched door to door for more than an hour before arriving at Bess’ house.

Bess initially refused to allow the deputies inside. He acquiesced when they told him they were legally entitled to investigate the child’s welfare, Feinstein-Portales said.

“The mother was asleep in another bedroom,” Feinstein-Portales said. “Bess opened the door to her room and told her to check on the child. The deputies heard noises coming from a back bedroom. They opened the door and saw the little girl.”

She was emaciated and had matted, waist-length hair. A nylon harness was wrapped around her chest. A chain was clipped to the harness and tied to a bedpost.

“The harness was a thick nylon strap, like something you would use on a horse,” Feinstein-Portales said. “The chain was about two feet long, real heavy and resembled a dog choke-chain.”

Authorities are seeking to place the girl in the custody of child protective services, Feinstein-Portales said.

When deputies arrived, the girl initially was frightened.

“But one of the deputies was able to build a kind of rapport with her,” Feinstein-Portales said. “She talked softly to the girl and did not move toward her until she responded. By the time paramedics arrived, the girl was smiling a little and stroking the deputy’s hand.” A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, said the girl was never seen.

“You never heard her,” the neighbor said. “I never thought she was there.”