Authorities in Topeka, Kansas have arrested and charged a homeless man with rape and murder after the death of a 5-year-old girl this week.
Mickel Wayne Cherry, 25, was accused of killing little Zoey Felix who used to live with him, her father, and her half-sister in a makeshift campsite.
Neighbors of the family said that Zoey’s mother, who had a lengthy rap sheet, had two weeks ago kicked the girl and her father from her filthy home.
Police were called to a field near the campsite where Zoey and her family stayed over reports of an unresponsive child.
Zoey was brought to a local gas station where first responders tried to save her life but unfortunately, she couldn’t be saved.
“Zoey did not deserve to be in anybody’s woods. This is her home right here. She has one, two, three, four, five people that would do anything for her,” neighbor Sharon Williams said.
“I just reported the neglect that was going on. She’s always dirty, no food unless some of us fed her, but they didn’t obviously take it serious.”
“Everybody on the block took care of Zoey. Everybody loved Zoey, except her parents,” another said.
