MADRID, July 25 (Bernama-dpa) – A German couple accused of keeping their three children locked inside their home for nearly four years in the northern Spanish city of Oviedo are facing a prison term of more than 25 years, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
The couple, a 53-year-old German man and his 48-year-old German-American wife, face charges of repeated psychological abuse and unlawful detention, prosecutors in the autonomous region of Asturias said on social media platform X on Thursday.
The children – 8-year-old twins and a 10-year-old boy – were rescued in April from a house littered with garbage after a concerned neighbour alerted authorities.
Local media reported the children were not allowed outside, not even into the garden, and were forced to wear diapers and face masks inside the home.
They had no contact with the outside world, no schooling, and no medical care, the prosecution said. They suffered severe physical and psychological developmental issues when discovered.
The confinement was allegedly motivated by an “unfounded fear of infection,” according to prosecutors. Media reports said the parents feared exposure to COVID-19.
The parents have been held in pre-trial detention since their arrest in April and have lost custody of the children, who are now under state care.
Prosecutors also requested a restraining order and €15,000 (US$17,600) in compensation per child, according to the La Voz de Asturias newspaper.
No date has been set for the start of the trial.
–BERNAMA-dpa