The 5-month-old and another child, 4 years old, were taken to York Hospital for medical evaluation and treatment. The 5-month-old was later flown to Hershey Medical Center, police said.

Thelma Colon-Ortiz
Thelma Colon-Ortiz
West York Fire Department officials were investigating complaints made against a building in the 1100 block of West King Street around noon on Monday, according to a news release, and West York Borough police were called to assist.

In one apartment, three adults and three children were found living in conditions "unsafe for human habitation," police reported.

Police said that "hundreds if not thousands of both dead and alive cockroaches" were in the apartment, covering furniture, mattresses, ceilings and the inside of the refrigerator.  Police said they found the bottom of the 4-year-old child's feet black and crusted with roach carcasses and other filth.

The three adults — Thelma Colon-Ortiz, 41; and Thelma Martinez-Colon, 21, and an adult man — were all taken into custody, according to police. Colon-Ortiz and Martinez-Colon were charged with misdemeanor charges of endangering the welfare of children and reckless endangerment, the release states. The adult man was released for medical reasons before arraignment.
Thelma Martinez-Colon
Thelma Martinez-Colon
Police said they also investigated another apartment in the same building, where four children — who were also taken into protective custody with York County Children, Youth and Families — were found living and sleeping near a 40-ounce bottle of flea and bedbug killer, among other detritus, West York Borough police reported.

An unsecured and fully-loaded .380-caliber handgun was found in a nylon holster under a mattress near where children were observed sleeping, the release states.
Police said a canned orange cheese product was observed sprayed and smeared on the apartment's walls, with cockroaches around the nozzle of the discarded can, and no edible food or drink was found in the refrigerator.

The adult man and woman in that home were taken into custody.
West York Borough Police Chief Justin Seibel said Friday the investigation is ongoing and further charges in the case are pending.
Property owner, manager investigated
Nick Laughman, a member of the West York Borough Council, said Friday that this week was the first time borough officials heard of complaints at the building.

West York Borough police said Monday that the "serious health hazards" of the building were brought to their attention by the persistent actions of one tenant, who had previously contacted the property's owner with no response, according to the news release.

Police said they executed a search warrant against Target Investments in the 200 block of West Market Street, and that company's owner, Robert Shaffer. The news release said "numerous documents and records pertaining to the management and handling of complaints" at the property were seized.

Police said they received conflicting information from both Shaffer and Drew Smith, the owner of Infinite Properties, who is listed as the owner of the building in the 1100 block of West King Street. A phone call to Smith Friday night was not immediately returned.

Living conditions were "clean and normal" in the four other apartment units in the building, police said, except for cockroaches police believed to be invading from other areas of the building and the basement. Due to conditions, the building was condemned and the residents of those four apartments were also removed.

Residents alleged that they had made repeated calls over the last few months about the roach infestation and other problems, but those calls were ignored, according to the news release.

Smith was served with a codes violation notice after the building was condemned.