"She ran up to me and was like, 'I’m homeless, I need someplace to stay and my house burnt down,'" David Cooper recalled.
After seeing the girl crouching behind a garbage bin, the girl's neighbor called the police Tuesday night.
Now, Suzanne Frederick, 31, and William Frederick, 33, are accused of making their daughter run laps for up to an hour without water, standing in time-out on one leg for hours at a time and sleeping on the floor.
According to Bay News 9's partner paper, the Tampa Bay Times, the girl reportedly set the family's kitchen on fire while her parents were out. She left her baby brother inside the home. William Frederick came home, put out the fire and didn't call the fire department, police said.
The parents of the 10-year-old girl were arrested Wednesday on charges of child abuse.
After the parents were arrested, building managers and police looked inside. They now believe the little girl set the kitchen on fire in what they believe was a cry for help.
Police said the Fredericks had a three-bedroom house, but no room for the 10-year-old girl. Her infant brother's crib was found inside a closet.
Neighbors said they didn't see any signs of abuse. The girl was homeschooled and enjoyed drawing with chalk in front of her house. She was often seen carrying giant bags of trash, saying it was her chore for the day.
The neighbors also thought the girl just enjoyed running on the pounded-out path around the trees where she jogged every day.
The apartment managers said the parents usually didn't let anyone in the house and they never requested any work orders.
One employee said she did complain to the girl's parents after she saw her carrying bag after bag to the garbage dumpster while gasping for air.
Both children are in custody of the Department of Children and Families.
The suspects remain in Hillsborough County Jail on charges of child abuse and child neglect. William Frederick faces an additional charge of failing to control or report a dangerous fire.