Housewife saw Turpin children weeks before rescue

Four of the children living in the California house of horrors were seen less than two months ago looking ‘very thin and very albino’, a neighbor has said.

Housewife Wendy Martinez, 41, who lives in a home behind the single-story ranch-style property, told DailyMail.com she saw four of the children kneeling in the front yard late at night at the end of October.

She said the quartet looked emaciated and pale, and appeared to have been instructed not to respond when she tried to say hello to them.

‘It was about 9pm at night and we came around right here and at the gate, we saw four children inside,’ Martinez said.

‘They were on their knees, four little kids, and they were just rolling on the grass. It was odd at that time of night.

‘Their mother was in the archway, I just remember the mother in the archway, and I said, “hi”. There was like no movement, not even to look over to see who’s saying hi.

‘No movement, like if they were told not to speak to anybody. The mom, no movement at all.’

 

‘Things 1 to 13’: The family are seen in Dr Seuss-style shirts, and all in blue jeans, in a family photo taken in April 2016

Wendy Martinez

Dennis Cooke

Wendy Martinez (left) thought the Turpins were the perfect family, but Dennis Cooke (right) did not the think their ‘beautiful’ home was big enough to house 13 children

Two parents have been arrested after 13 of their children were found shackled to beds inside their home in California

Two parents have been arrested after 13 of their children were found shackled to beds inside their home in California

Asked whether she thought the children needed help, she told DailyMail.com: ‘Honestly, I didn’t see like they needed help.

‘They were in their yard. It was awkward that it was at 9pm at night but they were in their yard.’

David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested Sunday after 13 adults and children aged between two and 29 were found inside their four-bedroom Perris home.

Some of the children had been shackled to their beds and, cops said, were being held in ‘a foul-smelling room’.

The Turpins purchased the house, which sits on a quiet well-to-do street, for $351,000 in August 2014 – later registering it as a school.

Sitting within a new development, the house had been a model home and was, said Dennis Cooke, 61, ‘already tricked out with custom fittings’ when they moved in.

David Allen Turpin

Louise Anna Turpin

Parents David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested and charged with torture and child endangerment

Police originally thought all of the victims were children but soon discovered seven were adults. The family are pictured above

Police originally thought all of the victims were children but soon discovered seven were adults. The family are pictured above

Cooke, who works at Home Depot in Perris, said he had been shown around the property before the Turpins moved in, adding: ‘This one was very beautiful, it was already tricked out with custom fittings, the backyard done, the landscaping done.’

But he said the spacious four-bedroom home is nowhere near large enough for 15 occupants, telling DailyMail.com: ‘Oh no, no. Absolutely not. I would say a normal family, if they had six children, it could be adequate but 13, no. absolutely not.’

Although the Turpins were understood to be running a school from the house, neighbors said they saw no sign of parents arriving to drop off their children – and most said they had no idea that a young family lived in the property.

‘You know what, I drive past this way every day but I’ve never seen the family or anything,’ said nurse Janeece Calhoun, 21. ‘Never anybody coming in or out.’

Neighbor Michelle Walls, 47, added: ‘You would think you would have heard them. In our neighborhood, kids are usually out playing, shooting hoops. Going to the park.

‘I’m surprised I never saw them because most kids need to go outside and play.’

The Turpin family, as well as extended relatives, are seen enjoying a holiday at Disneyland in California in 2016

The Turpin family, as well as extended relatives, are seen enjoying a holiday at Disneyland in California in 2011

Martinez says she last saw a member of the family a month ago, when she spotted one of the couple’s teenage daughters drive past in a red Volkswagen Jetta, which was seen parked outside the home today.

She said: ‘One of the girls was coming in in the red Jetta. They were in and out. I think it was one of the girls, I don’t know which one it was, but as I was going out, she was coming in. She’d been out.’

Martinez added: ‘It’s weird – you never know what’s going on. They’ve got three cars and that [mini]van. They move it, there’s no cobwebs.

‘They’re mobile. I don’t understand why they would wait so long to say something. Looking at their pictures, they seemed like the perfect family.’ 

Other shocked neighbors on Muir Woods Road said they did not even know children lived in the property, and were horrified to learn what was really going on inside.  

House of horrors: The victims, all siblings aged between two and 29 years old, were being held captive in a home in Perris, California, police said. Media are seen outside the house

House of horrors: The victims, all siblings aged between two and 29 years old, were being held captive in a home in Perris, California, police said. Media are seen outside the house

 Loved-up: Pictures on Facebook show the Turpins getting married, with their children next to them at the altar

 Loved-up: Pictures on Facebook show the Turpins getting married, with their children next to them at the altar

Playing happy families: The Turpins are pictured smiling at their wedding, which was conducted by an Elvis impersonator in Las Vegas

Neighbors told the Press-Enterprise they were horrified to learn of the allegations.

Andrew Santillan, who lives nearby said: ‘I didn’t know there were kids in the house. I had no idea this was going on.’

Zinzi and Ricardo Ross live on the same road as the Turpins.

‘It’s very shocking. Very devastating,’ Mr Ross said.

‘It’s crazy, I can’t believe this is going on,’ Mrs Ross added. 

But Andria Valdez said she had seen the children before, joking that they were like the vampire family in the Twilight books and films because they were ‘really, really pale’ and ‘only came out at night’. 

Another local said the children were seen building a Nativity scene in the front yard of their home a few years ago, but were ‘weird about it’ when complimented on their work. 

State records appear to suggest David Turpin home-schools his six children at their address, calling it Sandcastle Day School.

David Turpin’s parents, James and Betty Turpin, told ABC News they were ‘surprised and shocked’ at the news.

The couple, who live in West Virginia, said they had not visited the family for four or five years but had spoken to them on the phone, although not with their grandchildren.  

Andrew Santillan, who lives nearby to the home (pictured) said: 'I didn’t know there were kids in the house. I had no idea this was going on'

Andrew Santillan, who lives nearby to the home (pictured) said: ‘I didn’t know there were kids in the house. I had no idea this was going on’

Mr and Mrs Turpin were arrested and charged with nine counts of torture and 10 of child endangerment. Neither of them have a serious criminal record. Camera crews are seen outside the home

Mr and Mrs Turpin were arrested and charged with nine counts of torture and 10 of child endangerment. Neither of them have a serious criminal record. Camera crews are seen outside the home

Neighbors stand outside a home where a couple was arrested after police discovered that 13 people had been held captive in filthy conditions

Neighbors stand outside a home where a couple was arrested after police discovered that 13 people had been held captive in filthy conditions

The siblings – of which six are adults and seven are children – were only found after their 17-year-old sister broke out of the home and called the police. 

Riverside County Sheriff’s Department began investigating after the 17-year-old girl freed herself, escaped the home and called the police on a cell phone she stole from inside the property on Sunday morning, cops said.

The girl’s 12 siblings were then discovered by officers, who charged their parents with torture and child endangerment.

Officers arrived at the home early on Sunday morning and found several children and adults chained and padlocked to beds in a foul-smelling room.

They were malnourished, dirty and all of them have been hospitalized, police said.

The victims were given food and drinks and Child Protective Services and Adult Protective Services will care for them once they are well enough to be released from hospital. 

Shocked neighbors gathered on the street as police investigate the home where 12 siblings were found shackled

Shocked neighbors gathered on the street as police investigate the home where 12 siblings were found shackled

Some neighbors said they were unaware children even lived in the home in Perris, California. Neighbors are seen on the street

Some neighbors said they were unaware children even lived in the home in Perris, California. Neighbors are seen on the street

Police initially thought all of the victims were children but soon discovered seven were adults.

Mr and Mrs Turpin were arrested and charged with nine counts of torture and 10 of child endangerment. Neither of them have a serious criminal record.

The couple are being held at Robert Presley Detention Center east of Los Angeles and their bail has been set at $9million. They will appear in court on Thursday.

Pictures on Facebook show the Turpins renewing their vows at a wedding ceremony in Las Vegas by an Elvis impersonator, with 13 children posing for photos in matching outfits for the boys and the girls.

The 10 girls are all dressed in pink dresses with white tights and white shoes, while the boys are seen in suits with purple ties – and bowl haircuts like their father.

Other pictures show the family smiling on a trip to Disneyland, while another shows them wearing Dr Seuss-style shirts, with each child’s top emblazoned with ‘Thing 1’ to ‘Thing 13’.



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