Published: July 02, 2009 06:11 pm      

Kids found in shed behind day care center

Sealy — A Southeast Texas couple was in jail Thursday after authorities found a half dozen children locked and unsupervised in a tool shed behind an unlicensed day care center.



State officials said the children were surrounded by lawn equipment, gasoline and insecticide when they were found Wednesday morning after a child welfare inspector responded to a complaint that an illegal day care center was being operated at the home.



The children in the shed were among 14, ranging in age from 3 months to 5 years, being cared for by the couple, Child Protective Services spokeswoman Gwen Carter said. They legally could care for only three children, she said.



Police found the remaining children hidden in the house and at another residence next door.



Paramedics examined all the children and found they were unharmed. Parents were summoned to pick them up.



Austin County District Attorney Travis Koehn said Marietta Patek, 55, was charged with six counts of child endangerment. Her husband, Freddie Patek, 47, faced an evidence tampering charge.



Bond was set at $10,000 for each. They have no attorney of record to comment on their behalf, jail officials said Thursday.



"They're the sweetest people," a neighbor, Christalynn Bell, told Houston television station KRIV. "They always think about the children first. That's why right now, it's totally mindboggling."



The case remains under investigation by Sealy police and state child welfare authorities.



Sealy is about 45 miles west of Houston.