11-year-old Nevada boy with autism kept in metal cage at home, parents charged with child abuse

A Nevada couple was arrested on Tuesday after authorities found their 11-year-old son with autism held in a metal cage, wearing only a diaper with feces smeared on the cage's floor.

Henderson police officers went to the boy's home to conduct a wellness check at 10:15 a.m on Tuesday morning, when the Clark County School District reached out asking for assistance with a "truancy issue" involving a student who had not been coming to school.

According to police, officers discovered the 11-year-old was "being contained within a large metal enclosure."

The residence also had "inhospitable living conditions," police said.

Misty Scanlan, 46, and Jeffery Scanlan, 41, were arrested and each charged with a felony count of child abuse or neglect.

Neither of the Scanlans immediately returned calls requesting comment from NBC News on Thursday.

A truancy officer had visited the Scanlan home earlier in the day to inquire about the boy, but no one answered at the door, according to an arrest report obtained by NBC affiliate KSNV. The officer reported hearing a child screaming and a gate rattling inside.

When a Henderson police officer arrived later for a follow up check, Jeffrey Scanlan answered and told him their children were sick and allowed the officer inside when asked, KSNV reported. That's when the officer saw the metal enclosure, describing it as similar to a jail cell, and a boy wearing "only a diaper." The enclosure "had feces on the floor" as well, the arrest record stated.

A Special Victims Unit detective arrived to conduct an investigation and a walk-through of the home, according to KSNV, describing rooms with no furniture, trash strewn around, feces on the wall and floor, and rooms with external locks preventing anyone inside from leaving.

Jeffrey Scanlan allegedly told law enforcement that his child exhibited aggressive behavior due to a severe diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder and the metal enclosure was used as a “semi-punitive measure when his behavior is out of control," KSNV reported.

Court records show the Scanlans posted bond on Wednesday and are scheduled to appear again in court in May.