Police responded to the home around 4 a.m. Tuesday. The three girls are all sisters, ages 12, 13 and 17. The two youngest girls told police they were able to escape to a neighbor's house for help after their stepfather kicked in the door and threatened them with a knife.
When officers arrived, Tucson Police Capt. Michael Gillooly said they found the oldest sister in another bedroom.
"They were kept in filthy living conditions," said Gillooly.
Their mother, 32, and stepfather, 34, were arrested and booked into the Pima County Jail on three counts of kidnapping, three counts of child abuse-emotional abuse and three counts of child abuse-physical abuse. Police said the stepfather also was accused of one count of sexual abuse of a person under age 15. The case is being investigated as alleged child abuse and imprisonment.
Gillooly described the girls as being malnourished and dirty. The girls told officers they were fed once a day had not bathed in up to six months. They also told authorities they had been imprisoned in their bedroom for at least the last several months, if not up to two years.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
