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DCF Secretary On Case Of Girl Found In Freezer

The investigation continues into the death of an 11-year-old girl in Manatee County who was found dead in a freezer. Documents released earlier this week show child welfare investigators with the Sheriff’s Office made multiple visits to the home.

Despite evidence of abuse, investigators wrote that Janiya Thomas and her four siblings were not in imminent danger.Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary Mike Carroll said that "Janiya's" death points to the complexity of child welfare cases.

"You can change who signs the check, you can change what uniform folks wear, but in the end, this is a people helping people business", said Carroll. "I got people walking through front doors and into livings rooms all around this state every day, and they're asked to make split second, sometimes life altering decisions for families."

The Manatee Count Sheriff’s Office is in charge of child welfare investigations for the county, and handled the Thomas case for years.

Janiya had been missing for more than a year.

The Florida Department of Children and Families has since removed the other four children from the home.