Toddler Who Ate Roaches, Ants Dies After GA Mom Left Kids Alone For 12 Hours: Reports

DOUGLASVILLE, GA — A mother is facing charges after being accused of leaving her six children alone for 12 hours, during which her 1-year-old ate roaches and was found dead in a Douglasville home, media reports say.

The child was not identified, but authorities arrested Sherry Magby in connection with the case, WJCL reported.

Douglas County Jail records on Thursday showed the 37-year-old was arrested on April 2 and faces six counts of second-degree cruelty to children.

The incident happened in late March, when authorities responded to the James D. Simpson Drive home on a cardiac arrest call, WJCL reported. A coroner reportedly declared the toddler dead.

The oldest child, a 10-year-old, was left in charge of the 1-year-old, along with four other children who were ages 2, 4, 6 and 8, WJCL reported. The 1-year-old reportedly ate roaches and ants.

The children had no food and were left in deplorable conditions for half a day, both WAGA-TV and WJCL reported, citing local authorities. Officers reportedly detected a "foul odor" in the home.

Magby's whereabouts during the incident were not revealed, and the conditions of the surviving five children were not immediately known.

Neighbors and other community members expressed concern, telling reporters they would have helped the children if they knew they needed assistance.

“All they had to do was come down here," Ken Howell, who works at a nearby community outreach, told WJCL. "We could have helped them get food."

A neighbor recalled to WAGA-TV seeing the children play outside unsupervised around midnight on one occasion and advised she and her husband possibly needed to do a welfare check.

Magby is due in court in May to face an unrelated case, during which she was accused of using a pocketknife to stab one of her children in the back in 2023, WJCL reported. She was reportedly released on bond after her arrest in the case.