Deputy, wife nailed windows shut and denied children food, North Carolina cops say

A man was working as a sheriff’s deputy when he and his wife denied four children access to food and water, North Carolina officials said.

The Asheville-area couple also nailed windows shut, locked doors and wouldn’t let kids as young as 2 go to the bathroom, the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation said in arrest warrants.

Matthew Anders Lund, 36, and Aimee Nicole Lund, 39, are facing multiple counts of child abuse in connection to accusations that stem from June, court documents show.

Lund is now out of a job with the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, the department said July 23 in a news release.

Investigators didn’t list attorney information for the Lunds, and a Facebook user believed to be Aimee Lund didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment on Wednesday.

In addition to child abuse, the couple is accused of leaving children in a home “deprived of food, water and bathroom, whereby that juvenile could be adjudicated abused and neglected.” The kids listed in court documents ranged from 2 to 13 years old.

State officials said the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office and district attorney reached out July 22 with a request to investigate the case.

A day later, Sheriff Quentin Miller in a news release said Matthew Lund’s termination was “effective immediately.” He had been on the force since 2013, according to his personnel file.

Before that, he was fired from the nearby Hendersonville Police Department in 2012 “after a controversial officer-involved non-fatal shooting,” WLOS reported.

As the state continues its investigation, Lund and his wife reportedly are facing charges of misdemeanor child abuse and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Court documents list the Lunds as the children’s parents, and Aimee Lund posted about foster care on social media, the Citizen-Times reported. While arrest records don’t list the couple as husband and wife, the two have been married since 2018, according to the newspaper.

Officials said the pair lives in Leicester, roughly 10 miles northwest of Asheville.

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