The Associated Press

WHITLEY CITY, Ky. - A Michigan woman was arrested in a wooded area of southeastern McCreary County after authorities found 11 children at a creekside camp with little to eat.

Constable Milford Creekmore II said 39-year-old Lisa Abner was wanted in neighboring Whitley County on a custodial interference warrant. Authorities did not immediately have details on what brought about the charge, and Creekmore said Abner was not forthcoming with information.

The case was reported Wednesday when a motorist found two boys trying to catch a ride so they could find a telephone to call their mother.

When Creekmore arrived at the site, he found Jennifer Purcotie watching 11 children - four of her own and seven that belonged to Abner. Creekmore removed the children, then returned to the site Thursday and arrested Abner when she returned with three more children.

All the children have been placed in state care. They range in age from 4 weeks to 12 years, Creekmore said.

Abner is being held in the Whitley County jail on a $10,000 bond, Creekmore said. No arraignment date had been set, the county's court clerk's office said.

Creekmore said Abner left her children at the camp with Purcotie while traveling to Michigan, where the women, who lived together, had recently been evicted from a residence in Pontiac, Mich., a suburb of Detroit. He said he did not know what brought the women to Kentucky.

Creekmore said the children were examined and did not have serious health problems.