US: Man jailed after daughters found starving in cellar

The father of two young girls found starving in their home last year has been sentenced in Kansas to more than five years in prison.

Alex Wood was arrested last July with his wife, Jennifer Wood, after a social worker found the girls, aged six and seven, starving and dehydrated in the basement of their south Wichita home.

Wood had pleaded guilty to two counts of child abuse. His wife, Jennifer Wood, had pleaded guilty to those counts, as well as one count of aggravated battery.

However, the sentence Alex Wood received on Thursday is about 18 months longer than the one handed down to his wife on June 8, according to The Wichita Eagle.

The home was well-stocked with food, and Jennifer Wood’s children, a four-year-old girl and an eight-year-old boy, were found to be healthy and well-fed, authorities said.

The father travelled frequently for business, and his two daughters told police they ate only when he was at home.

The judge faulted the man for not protecting his daughters and seeing “that they are dying before your eyes.”