FORT WAYNE – A Fort Wayne man admitted Friday to keeping his son locked in a basement for several months, pleading guilty to neglect of a dependent.
Eric R. Urbano, 38, of the 1400 block of Spy Run Avenue, also pleaded guilty to possessing a controlled substance. He faces a suspended prison sentence and five years on probation when he is sentenced in August.
According to court documents, Urbano kept the boy, whose age was not listed in court records, locked in the basement from October to March. The boy, according to the documents, was forced to urinate in a cup, kept from running water and provided only an inflatable mattress to sleep on in the basement.
When police found the boy, he said Urbano locked him in the basement because he ate too much food. If he needed to go to the bathroom or to get something to eat, he would escape out a basement window and go to a nearby fast-food restaurant.
Urbano was in Florida with his girlfriend at the time police found the boy, according to court documents.
Prosecutors charged Urbano with drug possession a few months after his March arrest.
