By Juan Carlos Rodriguez Journal Staff Writer The house is empty now, and it's hard to tell from the outside that a short while ago 17 children lived there among urine and feces, in dire need of medical care and with no food in the refrigerator or cupboards. An empty box of diapers poking out of a garbage can and a child's chalky scrawl on the wall next to the front door are the only traces that remain of a large, extended family that has now been separated. The children, ranging in age from 3 months to 9 years, lived there with six adults � five women and a man � who are related and who were arrested Monday. Veronica Sarinana, 25, Leonard Pe�a, 30, Nancy Pe�a, 28, Frances Pe�a, 24, and Mara Pe�a, 21, were charged with child abuse after a Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office investigation found "deplorable" conditions at the home. Another woman living at the house, Monica Pe�a, was arrested for failure to appear in court but not for child abuse. A criminal complaint said that on Oct. 4, upon arriving at the home at the corner of Tapia and San Ygnacio SW, deputies found the 17 children dirty and without food. The complaint said there was a "strong odor of urine and feces" in the house and a nonworking toilet was full of human waste. The children were malnourished, in need of medicine for untreated sinus infections, and suffering from such poor dental health that some of their teeth had rotted to the gums. The complaint said several of the children had been disenrolled ...
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