Man Accused Of Forcing Disabled Mother To Live In Shed
DANIA BEACH (CBS4) - An elderly, disabled Dania Beach woman was found living in deplorable conditions in a tool shed behind her son's home, according to Broward Sheriff's Office investigators.
The son, Pastro Park, is charged with abusing the elderly.
The shed did not have power, water or air conditioning, according to BSO. There was a refrigerator but it was empty and dirty and a BSO spokesperson said the woman's bed had maggots in it. A sheriff's office report said the woman was found dehydrated and malnourished.
Worst of all, investigators say, the 84-year old woman, Sei Hee Park, suffered from a head injury and had a worm burrowing into the side of her face.
"I've never see anything like that on a living human being," said Sheriff's Office spokesperson Veda Coleman-Wright.
Sheila Kennedy is a tenant in Pastro Park's home. She said she called BSO on Sunday because of a dispute with Park. She told CBS4 she wanted investigators to find Park's mother.
"She's back there in the shed and she can't move, she can't talk, she can't do anything for herself," Kennedy said.
When investigators arrived on Sunday they found Park's mother in the shed. Park reportedly admitted his mother lived in the shed and he was charged with knowingly submitting her to abuse. BSO says Park told them he fed her and changed her often.
Park was granted a $5,000 bond and was ordered not to have any contact with his mother.
During a court hearing, Park told a judge that he works as a security guard and a part-time tutor at Broward College.
BSO said Park was experiencing financial difficulties and moved his mother into the shed so he could rent out her room.
"He thought a reasonable solution to his financial problem was to put mom in the tool shed," said Coleman-Wright. "Clearly this is not something you would even do to a pet and to have your mom back there? It's criminal."
Several neighbors in Kennedy's Dania Beach neighborhood told CBS 4 they never saw or heard anything unusual at the home.
"Very shocked," said Francy Sarmiento. "Crazy how someone could do that to another human being."
Kennedy said she planned to move out of the home and said she was pleased the elderly woman had been removed, especially before it gets even hotter.
"It's just gonna get hotter and chances are it's probably 10 or 15 degrees hotter in the shed and I just didn't want her to die," she said.
Sei Hee Park was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood for treatment.
The Department of Children and Families is also investigating.
