In a disgusting incident that has shocked people across the world, two parents in California have been arrested by the police for allegedly holding 13 children captive at home, some even tied to beds with chains and padlocks.
David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested from their home in Perris, California, on January 14 after one of the children managed to escape and called 911, thus saving her siblings. It was after this call that the Riverside County sheriff's deputies were sent to find this girl, but what the police saw was enough to break even the most stone-hearted person.
They found "several children shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks in dark and foul-smelling surroundings," the Los Angeles Times quoted the police statement as saying. The children were said to be living in a deplorable condition and also seemed to have been starved. Strangely seven of them are aged between 18 and 29. "The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty," the police added.
However, the couple wasn't able to provide a logical reason behind the children's state or why they were held captive. David and Louise have now been arrested on suspicion of torture and child endangerment and are being held on a $9-million bail each.
Meanwhile, neighbours have said that the residents of the area had no idea that that child even lived there and said they were horrified to know what was going on in the house. Andrew Santillan, who lives in the neighbourhood was surprised and told the Press Enterprise: "I didn't know there were kids in the house. I had no idea this was going on."
"It's very shocking. Very devastating,' another neighbour Ricardo Ross said, while his wife added: "It's crazy, I can't believe this is going on."
There also seems to be much more than what meets the eye as the couple's parents too did not know what went on at the house. David's parents James and Betty Turpin told ABC News that they were "surprised and shocked." They said that they hadn't visited in the last four-five years but had spoken to David and Louise on the phone.
Strangely, as per the state records, David home-schooled his six children and the home was tagged as Sandcastle Day School.
The 13 children have now been admitted to a local hospital and once they are discharged, they will be under the care of the Child Protective Services and Adult Protective Services.
