What police found inside Sydney ‘house of horrors’ where children were ‘tortured and fed pet food’

Police have rescued 14 siblings, including a baby, from a ‘house of horrors’ where they were allegedly tortured, beaten, and fed pet food at the hands of their parents.

The children were removed from a house in suburban Sydney after the two eldest daughters, aged in their late teens, secretly recorded the alleged abuse and emailed their school requesting a welfare check.

The two officers, who were first on the scene, described the conditions as ‘atrocious’ after seeing the children’s skinny bodies hidden by ill-fitting and soiled clothes.

Police allege the siblings, boys and girls ranging in age from seven months to 19-year-old, were kept from attending school and were locked away inside the home.

They also allege the parents whipped and abused their children if they spoke out of line or did not do their chores.

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 ten 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 him committing 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 emailed the school requesting a welfare check.

A seasoned detective was tasked with instructing his team to enter the home and assess the well-being of the children.

Waiting until the father had left, his officers entered the home and approached each child who was old enough to speak.

‘We were a bit worried because once we were in there, if they didn’t say anything, then yeah, of course, we were worried about when dad comes back, what was he going to do,’ the officer said. ‘It was pretty stressful.’

The officers received ‘so much information’ from the children and were able to gather additional evidence which lead to more charges for the parents.

One officer explained the children had ‘nothing worth saving’ from the home as they did not even have the basics like sheets, pillows or blankets.

The eldest sister said she was scared but had ‘a good feeling’ as she watched the police enter her home.

She remembers comforting her 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 the 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.

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 of months of their rescue, the children were all enrolled in proper schooling and had all the necessary things for their education.

The eldest girls look after their 12 other siblings, run household errands, and 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.