A Milwaukee father will spend five years behind bars after authorities discovered his six children locked inside a storage unit in conditions that shocked investigators and the public.
The case, which unfolded in September 2025, began when police responded to reports of a crying baby coming from inside a locked storage space. Officers forced entry and found six children, ranging in age from just two months to nine years alone in the dark unit.
Inside, there was no lighting. A bare mattress and a sectional sofa served as beds. A bucket had been left for the children to use as a toilet.
Police soon located the parents, 34-year-old Charles Dupriest and Azyia Zielinski, asleep in a car nearby. Both were arrested at the scene.
Dupriest was later convicted on multiple charges, including five felony counts of child neglect, three misdemeanor counts of neglect, and possession of a firearm as a felon. The court handed him a five-year prison sentence tied to the gun charge, while the neglect charges will run concurrently. After his release, he will remain under extended supervision for another five years.
Zielinski, the children’s mother, pleaded guilty earlier this year. She avoided prison and received a stayed sentence.
Court records reveal troubling details about the children’s situation. The oldest child, a 9-year-old, told investigators he had been left in charge of his younger siblings. He reported feeling hungry and said there was no way to contact anyone in case of an emergency.
Surveillance footage from the storage facility showed the parents dropping the children off at the unit. A staff member had previously noticed a bed inside and alerted management, which led to an eviction notice being issued.
Prosecutors highlighted Dupriest’s criminal history, which includes prior convictions related to assault and weapons offenses. During trial, they argued he showed an “air of entitlement” and knowingly made decisions that endangered his children. On the day of the incident, authorities said the family had been offered a safer place to stay, but Dupriest declined.
In court, Dupriest acknowledged the seriousness of the situation while asking for leniency. “I understand that this situation is very serious and I understand that it’s affected [my children]. My absence has affected them. And be being absent from them further would continue to affect them negatively,” he said.
Prosecutor Tom Hasle pushed back against the idea that the case was about financial hardship. “This case is not about punishing poverty. It’s about holding parents accountable for choices that put children in danger.”
The case has sparked wider concerns about child safety, parental responsibility, and the limits of intervention when families face hardship.
