An Ohio couple who tortured their five adopted sons in “dungeon”-like conditions and denied them food and water, among other abuses, has been sentenced following a plea deal.
According to The Cincinnati Enquirer and local outlet WLWT, Matthew Edmonson, 50, pleaded guilty to five counts of child endangerment on Friday, while her husband, Charles Edmonson, 64, pleaded guilty to kidnapping, felonious assault, and three counts of child endangerment.
According to the Enquirer, Matthew was sentenced to at least 13 years in prison for the abuse he inflicted on the five boys, four of whom had special needs.
Prior to the plea deal, the Clermont County Prosecutor’s Office stated that the Edmonsons, who were formally charged with child abuse in June following an investigation, could face sentences of more than 200 years, according to the outlet.
As part of the new agreement, prosecutors sought to dismiss 44 counts against Matthew and 48 counts against Charles, as well as the possibility of a life sentence.
The Edmonsons were first charged with five counts of child endangerment in June, and additional charges were added in July and August after more evidence of “severe mental and physical abuse” was discovered, including numerous videos, according to the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office.
Clermont County prosecuting attorney Mark J. Tekulve previously stated that this investigation followed a separate one into Charles, which resulted in him being sentenced to three years in prison for sexually assaulting another of his adopted sons, who authorities said was an adult at the time but had been groomed since childhood, according to the Enquirer and Cincinnati outlet WCPO.
That investigation, Tekulve said, led to the discovery of footage of the parents treating their five young sons — biological brothers whom they fostered before formally adopting — “worse than prisoners of war,” according to WCPO and WLWT.
“The videos of these undernourished and naked children huddled up in a locked room in the basement, on the stone-cold basement floor like a pile of puppies trying to stay together to keep warm, are nothing short of gut-wrenching,” Tekulve wrote in June’s statement.
“These two are unfit to be parents, and I am grateful to those who have worked tirelessly to make sure they will not be,” he declared. “Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time and will not be the last time that my office has had to seek indictment for people like this who pretend to be ‘parents.'”
Tekulve’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE on Sunday, December 29.
Prosecutors said the children had previously been admitted to the hospital for bruising, bleach burns, and potential internal bleeding, among other reasons, which their parents were able to explain, according to WLWT. These hospital visits were the result of abuse and torture, as described by prosecutors in court.
According to the Enquirer, the couple’s “punishment” for the boys included placing them in a basement room with a metal bed, often without a mattress or blanket, depriving them of clothes, and forcing them to sleep naked on the floor.
The adoptive parents would also withhold food and water, as evidenced by footage of one of the children scavenging for food in the trash.
Authorities also discovered footage showing one of their children tied to a basement bed, according to the outlet. Prosecutors also claimed that one of the couple’s sons had previously told school officials that urine and feces had been rubbed into his eye as punishment.
Two of the brothers were 13 and 11 years old when they were adopted, while a set of triplets was eight. They were removed from the Edmonsons’ home in February as part of an investigation into their parents.
Their father declined to speak during his sentencing, but their mother, Matthew, issued a statement apologizing and wishing “healing” for her sons, according to WLWT.
“Your honor, I am here in front of you because I believe God has a plan for me,” she said through tears. “I understand it took a lot of mistakes to get here, and I’m now seeing the big picture. I want to break the negative cycle. I want my sons to be psychologically and emotionally healed. I am truly sorry.”
The Edmonsons also have a biological son, Bailey, who was sentenced alongside his parents on Friday and given two years probation after pleading guilty to three misdemeanor counts of child endangerment, according to the Enquirer.
He was indicted in July and had previously faced two counts of felonious assault and four counts of endangering children.
The kids are now in “new living situations, where they are thriving,” Tekulve said in a statement following the couple’s sentencing on Friday, according to WLWT.
“The monstrous acts they were subjected to will no longer be a barrier to their development,” the prosecutor stated. “While they will likely need mental health intervention the rest of their lives, physically and emotionally, they are flourishing.”
