A Camden County mother and her boyfriend are accused of chaining her 10-year-old son to a radiator pipe for two weeks as a "punishment."

Camden home where a boy was chained to a radiator
Camden home where a boy was chained to a radiator (WPVI TV)
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Camden County Police announced Tuesday that 31-year-old Florence Pollard and 29-year-old Brian Craig  of Blackwood were arrested Monday in Camden.

Authorities say Pollard called police to report her son had run away. But when the child was found a few blocks away, he told police he had been chained to a radiator in his mother's bedroom by his ankle for two weeks. WABC TV reports the boy was also restrained at times with plastic zip ties. The  boy, identified as "M.P." by WCAU TV, was chained 24 hours a day even while he slept although he was unchained to eat and to use the bathroom.

"This level of depravity inflicted upon a child is chilling," Camden Police Chief J. Scott Thomson said in a press release.

Officers say they found a chain and lock attached to a radiator.

The boy and his five siblings are in the custody of state child-welfare officials. Pollard and Craig are each being held on $50,000 bail. They are charged with Endangering the Welfare of a Child, 2nd degree and Criminal Restraint, 3rd degree.

It's not known if either has retained an attorney.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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