Three very young children were found during the search for a stolen vehicle in the Natchez area.

Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies helped recover a stolen vehicle out of Webster Parish and found three infants, lacking adequate nutrition and with poor hygiene, inside the vehicle.

Concordia Parish is just across the Mississippi River from Natchez.

Two juveniles, a male and female, were reportedly taken into custody in the area of Airport Road in Concordia Parish on Thursday with the vehicle and infants in their possession.  Their names were not released because of their ages.

Authorities said CPSO received notice from the Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office regarding a vehicle entering Concordia Parish on Thursday that had been stolen during the early morning hours and was being tracked via geolocation data.

Deputies were able to locate the vehicle traveling in the area of Airport Road and attempted to initiate a traffic stop.

The driver, a juvenile male, failed to yield but was blocked in by patrol units and forced to a stop on US 84 near Dollar General. Both the driver and juvenile female passenger were then taken into custody without incident and transported to the CPSO jail.

Deputies also observed three infants in the back seat of the vehicle, CPSO states, adding, “It was evident that the children had been in the car for a very extended period of time, without proper hygiene, hydration (and) nutrition or air conditioning.”

The children were quickly transported to CPSO’s Community Justice Center in Ferriday, where they were cared for by CPSO staff.  They remained with CPSO staff for several hours while arrangements were made for them to be picked up by a family member. The well-being of the children remains under investigation, CPSO states.

Concordia Parish Sheriff David Hedrick thanked the staff of Dollar General, who graciously donated diapers and clothing for the children.