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Kids Died After 10 Hours in Closet, Mom Charged

By Laura Strachan, Esq. on September 22, 2010 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

An Indianapolis mother is facing murder charges. Two kids died after 10 hours in the closet when the 28 year-old mother of five locked all of her children in a 6 feet by 18 inch closet to go visit a friend. Edyan Farah, originally from Somolia, placed a bed in front of the closet before leaving, only to return to find her 5 year-old daughter and 3 year-old son dead.

The Associated Press quotes Lt. Jeff Duhamell on the tragedy: "It's just a very, very sad case. It's one of the worst I've ever seen -- to be placed in a closet approximately 18 inches by 6 feet and a bed pushed up against it for a minimum of 10 hours. We think they were there for possibly a lot longer and this was probably not the first time." Well if it was not the first time, it most certainly is the last. The surviving three children, ranging in age from seven to one have been placed in foster care.

Farah told police that she was, "not in her right mind" when she put her children in the closet. After finding two of her children stiff and unresponsive on her return, she waited four hours before calling the police. Friends in the apartment complex told police that Farah was acting strangely upon returning from her 10 hour outing and would not let anyone into her apartment. When police arrived, the two children were dead on the couch. Official autopsy reports have not been released yet.

Edyan Farah has been held in the local jail on a $200,000 bond since Monday and will be charged with the two deaths of her children. She was also likely face charges relating to child endangerment and neglect. The children's father was visiting family in Somolia at the time of the incident, he is currently en route back to the U.S.

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