DAKOTA COUNTY, MN (WCCO/CNN) - Six children have been removed from a home after their parents were charged with child abuse and sexual conduct.
Investigators said Flor and her husband Alfonso Gallegos punished two of their children by withholding food, locking them in a room and tying them to a pole or bed.
"This is a very disturbing case," said James Backstrom, attorney for Dakota County.
Backstrom said his primary concern now is to protect the children who lived in the home.
A criminal complaint accuses Flor Gallegos of child abuse against two of the children while Alfonso is accused of causing serious injury to one of the children’s genitals.
“(The complaint) alleges that these children were falsely imprisoned, locked in their bedroom or tied up in a basement,” Backstrom said. “They were denied food. They were potentially whipped with a belt or extension cord."
Flor Gallegos denied the allegations but admitted to disciplining the children.
“I think what that is, a lot of stuff is being put into the kids' heads," Gallegos said. “I spanked them with a belt, but I've never spanked them with no whip."
The county removed the children from the home in November.
"No possible way because my husband's not a nasty pervert like that," Flor Gallegos said.
According to the court documents, the siblings didn't report the incidents because they didn't want to be split up.
Court documents also show child protective services had investigated incidents at the home several times since 2009.
Investigators were able to substantiate the claims only recently, said Backstrom.
"We're going to do our best to hold accountable people we believe have broken the law," Backstrom said.
But Flor Gallegos plans to go the distance.
"I'm going to fight hard and do whatever I need to do to get my kids to come home," she said.
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