Five malnourished children have been found locked in a filthy room in ‘sub-human’ conditions after throwing handwritten notes to neighbours through their barred windows.
The three boys and two girls aged between six and 14 were rescued from their gruesome confinement in Cuiaba, central west Brazil, on Friday.
Investigators said the parents, who have been arrested on suspicion of child abuse, were holding a barbecue when they arrived at the property.
Squalid conditions: The three boys and two girls aged between six and 14 were rescued from their gruesome confinement in a locked room in Cuiaba, central west Brazil, on Friday after begging neighbours to help them escape
The youngsters were discovered trapped in the filthy and heavily soiled room, sleeping on wet mattresses with no electricity or access to food or running water.
The emaciated victims drew attention to their plight by throwing handwritten notes wrapped around stones from their barred windows.
The notes, released by police from the Specialised Defence of Children and Adolescents’ Rights (Deddica), described their heart-breaking conditions.
In one of the desperate missives the youngsters wrote: ‘We are locked in the room. We are hungry and thirsty.’
The emaciated victims drew attention to their plight by throwing handwritten notes wrapped around stones from their barred windows
The notes, released by police from the Specialised Defence of Children and Adolescents’ Rights (Deddica), described their heart-breaking conditions
In another they scrawled: ‘We need food. We are imprisoned without food. He (their father) gives us rotten food.’
The parents of the victims, named as Helio Roberto dos Santos and Natalia Pereira de Paula, both said to be in the thirties, have been arrested for aggravated assault and domestic violence involving child abuse, torture and ill-treatment.
When investigators arrived at the property they found the parents holding a barbecue.
Wagner Vinicius de Lima told Nortao Journal: ‘It appeared to me that Helio and Natalia were eating while the children, who were locked-up in the room, were starving and could only smell the food.’
The five siblings have been taken into care by Deddica.
Child protection agents revealed they received several anonymous tip-offs alerting them to the victims’ brutal ordeal.
Detective Lima said: ‘The children and adolescents spent their days locked in the room at the back of the house where the parents lived. They occasionally left the place to go to school.
Detective Wagner Vinicius de Lima described the conditions inside the room as ‘sub-human’
When investigators arrived at the property they found the parents holding a barbecue
‘The room was dank, dirty and foul-smelling and the mattresses on which the victims slept were damp. The ground was wet, the odour strong and the conditions terrible.
‘I have worked in child protection for seven years and I have seen a bit of everything but this was the first time I have found children living in such sub-human conditions,’ he declared.
Det Lima added: ‘They will need a lot of psychological care to recover because even when we rescued them they was a great deal of sadness in their demeanour.’
According to investigators the victims were ‘extremely malnourished’.
Det Lima said: ‘The victim’s food was severely rationed. They lived on unseasoned and undercooked rice and beans, which they told us their father provided. The food was often sour and off.
‘All the children had bruises and cuts on their bodies. We believe they have suffered physical violence and abuse.
‘Neighbours reported hearing children screaming during beatings which were allegedly carried out by their parents using belts and metal pipes.’
It is unclear how long the youngsters have been incarcerated. Agents said they will begin investigating the case next week allowing the freed siblings a few days to settle into their new surroundings.
It is unclear how long the youngsters have been incarcerated. Agents said they will begin investigating the case next week allowing the freed siblings a few days to settle into their new surroundings