Fourteen siblings, including a baby, have been rescued from a ‘house of horrors’ as their parents are accused of abusing, torturing and locking their children away.
The children were removed from a house in suburban Sydney after the two eldest daughters, who are in their late teens, secretly recorded the alleged abuse and emailed their school requesting a welfare check.
The children, boys and girls ranging in age from several months to 19-years-old, were allegedly fed ‘pet-quality’ meat, whipped, beaten, and not allowed out of the house.
Police allege the siblings were kept from attending school and were banned from phones, books and social media.
They also allege the children were fighting for rations of toilet paper and their ‘skinny bodies’ were hidden by soiled and ill-fitting clothes.
Fourteen children – boys and girls ranging in age from seven-months old to 19 years old – from their home in Sydney after the two eldest daughters recorded their parent’s allegedly abusing them
Only the two eldest children were allegedly allowed out of the house to attend prayers, while the youngest boy had only ventured to the park at the end of their street.
Their parents are charged with a string of offences and are forbidden from seeing their children.
The 18-year-old daughter said her parents locked her up when she became too inquisitive and was asking too many questions.
‘We weren’t allowed to speak without permission. No friends, no internet access. No clothing, no jobs, no life, no study,’ she told the Daily Telegraph.
The older girls were assigned children to take care of each day as well as chores and daily religious study.
Their mum, who converted to Islam as an adult, would then report the children’s ‘bad’ behaviour to her husband when he returned home.
Based on the mother’s report, the father would then punish the children who were ‘bad’ with bashings.
One of the daughters claimed her dad bought her a pet cat only to torture it in front of her as punishment.
‘It was something that really got to me. I loved cats so he would beat them, then make me parade the dead cats around,’ she said.
Another sister claimed she was emotionally abused by her parents and was always seeking their approval.
She explained on one occasion when she cooked and baked all day for 10 men who came over to the house her father would be angry about dust on the cupboard.
The teen said she tried her best to make her dad happy so that she could ‘stop the bad stuff’.
The children were allegedly fed ‘pet-quality’ meat, whipped, beaten and not allowed out of the house. They were also allegedly kept from attending school and were banned from phones, books and social media, with only the two eldest allowed to leave home for prayers
The pair took action after they saw their younger brother struggling mentally, fearing the alleged abuse would cause irreversible mental health damage or lead to suicide.
Using their iPads in secret, the sisters gathered information from the internet about child abuse, assault and what was legally acceptable for a parent to do.
They also took photos of the alleged abuse, particularly of their younger siblings allegedly being whipped.
When one of the children was allegedly being assaulted, one of the older sisters sent an email to the school requesting a welfare check.
The eldest sister said she was scared but had ‘a good feeling’ as she watched the police enter her home.
She remembers comforting her younger sister after she started to cry when police handcuffed and took their mother away.
One of the girls said giving a statement to the police was the ‘best part’ because it gave her freedom to tell the truth in a safe environment.
‘Giving a statement to the police was probably the best part of it … I know it sounds strange saying you know doing statements for police was like a fun thing. But it was,’ she said.
The lead police officer said the priority was to talk to get as much information from each child and get them to safety.
One of the female officers who was first on the scene and is still in contact with the family was tasked to let the children know their parents would not be coming home.
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb (pictured) said she was proud of the dedication and compassion of the two first responding officers and their continuing care for the family
Officers had to teach the children how to do basic errands, including grocery shopping and even lessons on money.
Detectives worked hard to keep the family together, with the older siblings insisting on caring for the younger ones.
‘It’s such an unusual case so there’s definitely some bumps along the way,’ the lead officer said.
‘The girls know what they have taken on is a massive responsibility but they were up for the challenge if it meant keeping their family together.’
Within a couple months of their rescue, the children were all enrolled in proper schooling and have all the necessary things for their education.
The eldest girls look after their 12 other siblings and run household errands, take their siblings to school and all their medical appointments.
Officers said the pair have taken the responsibility of parents and would like to see possible ‘respite’ for them so they too can have ‘their own life’.
‘We would love to see them get some respite, maybe a nanny to help them while they study and focus on their own goals and dreams,’ the officers said.
‘They don’t complain though, they are the most amazing young ladies and we would do anything to support them.’
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said she was proud of the dedication and compassion of the two first responding officers and their continuing care for the family.
The children’s mother and father are before the courts.
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