3 kids, woman found in bug-infested Clover home, cops say. Mom and boyfriend charged

A Clover mother and her boyfriend have been charged with felony neglect after three children and an elderly disabled woman were found in a home infested with insects, trash, feces and rotten food, police said.

Police found insects crawling on floors, walls and furniture in the Cloverleaf Drive home Thursday, said Capt. Logan McGarity of the Clover Police Department. Three boys, ages, 12, 14 and 15, and a woman, 67, were living in the home.

Mary Malinda Rodriguez, 41, mother of the three children, is charged with three counts of child neglect and one count of neglect of a vulnerable adult, according to police and court records.

The woman, found in a bed on sheets covered with human waste, is Rodriguez’ mother, officers said.

Richard Shelby Spitzer, 41, is charged with three counts of child neglect. Spitzer told officers he babysits the children when Rodriguez is out of the home, police said.

Officers were called to the home Thursday afternoon to assist S.C. Department of Social Services agents where officials found the home with “trash strewn about the rooms,” police said. There was animal feces and urine on floors, and unwashed dishes and food left in multiple areas of the house, officers said.

Rodriguez’s mother was taken to a hospital for treatment, then will be placed in DSS custody, according to Clover police, and a family member took custody of the children.

Both Rodriguez and Spitzer are being held without bond at the York County jail.

Andrew Dys: 803-329-4065, @AndrewDysHerald