The parents of 13 siblings who were starved and chained to beds in California have been charged with torture and child endangerment.
David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested on Sunday after a 17-year-old emaciated girl escaped from their house in Perris, about 70 miles east of Los Angeles, and called police.
The couple have been charged with nine counts of torture and 10 counts of child endangerment, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said.
Police said they found several of the couple’s 13 children, ranging from aged two to 29, “shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks in dark and foul-smelling surroundings.”
“The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty,” a statement said.
Their parents are being held on $9m bail and are due to appear in court on Thursday, police said.
Source: Newsnow