TORONTO, March 1 (UPI) -- A Toronto couple faced charges Tuesday for allegedly forcing an incontinent 68-year-old relative to live in the home's unheated and barren garage, police said.
Toronto Police held a news conference Monday to announce the charges against Kwong Yan, 43, and his wife, Qi Tan, 28, for allegedly moving Kwong's mother to the garage in November, the Toronto Star said.
The only source of heat in the two-car garage throughout the winter was a dryer hose connected to the furnace, the Toronto Sun said.
The woman was found unconscious with frostbite last week by paramedics and later had a stroke in the hospital where she was placed on life support, the reports said. She was declared legally incompetent last year because of dementia and her son was designated -- and paid -- as her legal guardian, police said.
Detective Sgt. Mike Stones told reporters he was "disgusted" by the woman's living conditions. He said she had a mattress, a bucket of water, disposable diapers and a broken portable toilet in the garage while there were two vacant bedrooms in the house.
