The sheriff said the abandonment appears to have taken place in the spring/summer of 2020, right as the COVID-19 pandemic was in its early stages.

During a Tuesday afternoon news conference, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard released more information on the case surrounding children who were left alone for years in a Pontiac home.

Three children were found living alone in "absolute squalor" in a Pontiac, Michigan, rental home after their mother abandoned them years ago, authorities said.

Children, ages 15, 13 and 12, were found inside a Pontiac, MI home full of feces and trash. According to the sheriff's office, their mother had left them alone in the home around four years ago, and would return to drop food off to them.