A man has been arrested following a horrifying incident at an apartment in Lancaster, California.
The disturbing events unfolded in the early hours of Saturday morning after a distressed mother contacted the police to report the abuse of her children. According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the call indicated the children were in danger at the location. Upon arriving at the scene, deputies discovered a female adult and proceeded to search the premises. Inside, they found four children under the age of 10, all of whom had sustained lacerations.
Tragically, two of the children were pronounced dead after being rushed to the hospital, while the other two were found to have non-life-threatening injuries and were in stable condition. Lieutenant Daniel Vizcarra of the Sheriff's Department revealed that the exact location of the attack remains unknown, but all four children were discovered in a single bedroom.
The biological father of the children, identified as Prospero Serna from San Bernardino County, was apprehended by the police. News footage captured the intense struggle between Serna and two deputies, who eventually managed to subdue him with the assistance of their colleagues. At the time of his arrest, Serna was reportedly covered in blood.
Initially considered a person of interest, Prospero Serna was later arrested on charges of murder and child abuse following an investigation by homicide detectives. Authorities have not disclosed whether the family had been previously investigated for child abuse.
Lieutenant Vizcarra acknowledged the profound impact of the incident on all those involved, stating, "It's extremely difficult. This is traumatizing for everybody who's involved. All the deputies who responded, all the parties involved, the investigators, everyone."
Lancaster, a city located in the Mojave Desert approximately 80 miles north of Los Angeles, is home to around 170,000 residents.
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