Authorities in Texas are investigating the apparent abandonment of four young children who were found in a roadway near a residence in Spring.

According to Click2Houston, two teenagers first discovered the children, all believed to be under the age of four, in various states of undress on Cypress Road. Responding officers discovered there were no adults in the home, and investigators believe the children were left in the home for multiple days.

The eldest child reportedly said to deputies: “I think Mommy is dead.”

But the mother was later found at a hotel with an unidentified man.

According to the report, officers found the home in disarray and much of the children’s clothing was completely soiled. A 1-year-old child had reportedly fallen from a crib and may have suffered injuries.

The children are now in the custody of Child Protective Services.

“I mean, the kids could have been hit by a car out here, could have remained in the home and something (could have) happened,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez reportedly said at a press conference. “It appears that the youngest toddler about a year old, a year and a half, may have fallen from a crib, and so there could have been an injury there. I mean we’re talking small children. It’s a shame.”

The case has been referred to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.

Anyone with posssible information is urged to contact the Harris County Sheriff’s Office at (713) 221-6000.