California authorities say they have rescued more than a dozen starving, filthy young people who were chained inside their parents’ home in Perris.
One of the captives, a 17-year-old girl, escaped over the weekend and notified the Riverside Sheriff’s Department that her siblings “were being held captive inside the residence by her parents,” some of them “bound with chains and padlocks,” the Sheriff’s Department said.
Initially, officials believed the “slightly emaciated” teenager was only 10 years old. They confronted a horrific scene at her home, according to a press release.
“Further investigation revealed several children shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks in dark and foul-smelling surroundings, but the parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner,” the department said.
“The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty,” the department said.
Turpin family: 13 children who were held captive by their parents
9 show all Turpin family: 13 children who were held captive by their parents
1/9 David and Louise Turpin with their 13 children who were being held captive by their parents in the family home in Perris, California. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
2/9 The home of David Allen and Louise Anna Turpin, where some of their children were bound with chains and padlocks. Reuters
3/9 David Allen Turpin poses for a mugshot after being arrested. Riverside County Sheriffs Department via Getty
4/9 One of the captives, a 17-year-old girl, escaped over the weekend and notified the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
5/9 Perris residents watch as media gather in front of Turpin family home. The Sheriff's deparmtent said "the parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner." AFP/Getty
6/9 The children were found in dark and foul-smelling surroundings and "The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty,” the department said. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
7/9 Neighbours stand outside the home. Getty
8/9 Louise Anna Turpin poses for a mugshot after being arrested. Not all of their victims were children: of the 13 victims, seven were between the age of 18 and 29, according to the Sheriff's Department. Riverside County Sheriffs Department via Getty
9/9 David and Louise Turpin in 2015. Authorities arrested them on torture and child endangerment charges, setting bail at $9m (£6.5m) apiece. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
Not all of them were children: of the 13 victims, seven were between the age of 18 and 29, according to the Sheriff's Department.
After interviewing both parents — identified as 57-year old David Allen Turpin and 49-year old Louise Anna Turpin — authorities arrested them on torture and child endangerment charges, setting bail at $9m (£6.5m) apiece.
California records indicate that a David Turpin received state approval to open a private school, the Sandcastle Day School, on the same block where the siblings were found. A representative for the California Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A 17-year-old girl escaped from her California home to call police and lead them back to arrest her parents after they discovered a house full of horrors.
Here’s what they found at the house:
According to local California law enforcement officials, they discovered 12 children who were malnourished to the point that some appeared much younger than their actual age. Others were chained to their beds.
The girl was so malnourished that police believed she was ten years old when they first encountered her.
Police say they found “several children shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks in dark and foul-smelling surroundings.”
The statement also said that the parents “were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner.”
Of the other children, police say they believed they were all underage, but discovered that some were above 18 years old, but were emaciated to the point that they looked much younger.
Arrested for torture and child endangerment
The couple were identified as David Turpin, 57, and Louise Turpin, 49. They were arrested on suspicion of torture and child endangerment. They are each being held on $9 million bail in Riverside country.
UPDATE: Booking Photos Torture/Child Endangerment Investigation in Perris pic.twitter.com/4IdK7vPB2n — Riverside County Sheriff's Dept (@RSO) January 15, 2018
The children told police they were “starving.” They have been sent to local hospitals for treatment.
Several media trucks have gathered near the house where the alleged abuse took place in Perris. @pressenterprise pic.twitter.com/DZ0StIWoTB — Shane Newell (@journoshane) January 15, 2018
COPS found 13 children shackled to beds in their home in California in a shocking discovery.
Two parents were arrested following the find - but what do we know about them and the children?
Facebook The Turpins and the 13 children who cops allege were found shackled to beds
Who are David Allen Turpin and Louise Anna Turpin?
David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested and charged with nine counts of torture and 10 counts of child endangerment.
The arrests were made after one of the 13 siblings called police and said her 12 brothers and sisters were being held captive.
She was so emaciated cops thought she was 10 years old at first.
The 17-year-old told police some of her siblings were bound with chains and padlocks.
Handout - Getty Louise Anna Turpin, who was arrested by police in California on January 14
What did cops find at the California home?
Police said when they arrived at the property in Perris, about 70 miles east of Los Angeles, they found children shackled to their beds in "dark and foul-smelling surrounds".
The shocking discovery was made on January 14 in the US state.
A statement from the Riverside County Sheriff's Office said: "Deputies located what they believed to be 12 children inside the house, but were shocked to discover that seven of them were actually adults.
"The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty."
Neighbours told local media they had no idea there were children in the house, while others said they only saw them at night.
The six children were transported to the Riverside University Hospital System (RUHS) for medical examinations and admitted for treatment. The seven adult children were taken to Corona Regional Medical Centre for an examination and treatment.
Handout - Getty David Allen Turpin was arrested and charged with nine counts of torture and 10 counts of child endangerment
What do we know about Mr and Mrs Turpin?
David Turpin's parents, James and Betty, from West Virginia, said they were "surprised and shocked" at the allegations.
After the pair's arrest pictures emerged of them and the 13 children posing on various day trips.
One showed the couple and the kids at Disneyland, wearing matching T-shirts.
Another showed the Turpin's getting married in a Las Vagas style ceremony - complete with Elvis impersonator.
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The children were gathered around the couple wearing matching dresses and suits.
The girls all had matching hair cuts and the boys all sported bowl cuts.
The pair were due in court on January 18.
Thirteen siblings have been discovered shackled to their beds amid foul surroundings in a California home.
Two parents have been arrested and charged with torture after a 17-year-old girl escaped from the residence in Perris — 113 km east of Los Angeles — early on Sunday morning (US time).
Local police said she called officers from a mobile phone she took from the home.
Parents David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested and charged with torture and child endangerment. Photo / Riverside County Sheriff's Dept
ABC reports that the teen told the emergency operator that she and her 12 siblings were being held captive in their home by their parents.
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Investigators from the Perris Police Department and the Riverside County Sheriff's Department met with the girl, they said she looked emaciated and only 10 years old, even though she was 17.
After interviewing the girl, investigators contacted her parents, David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, at the home from where the teenager escaped.
"Further investigation revealed several children shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks in dark and foul-smelling surroundings, but the parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner," a police statement read.
"The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty," the statement continued.
"All 13 victims, ranging from the age of two to 29, were transported to the Perris Station and interviewed.
"Both parents were detained and transported to the station for further investigation.
'Things 1 to 13': The family are seen in Dr Seuss-style shirts, and all in blue jeans, in a family photo taken in April 2016. Photo / Supplied
The family at Disneyland. Photo / Supplied
"Child Protective Services (CPS) and Adult Protective Services (APS) arrived to assist in the investigation."
The victims were provided with food and drink after claiming to be starving, a police spokesman said.
"The six children were eventually transported to the Riverside University Hospital System (RUHS) for medical examinations and admitted for treatment.
"The seven adult children were transported to Corona Regional Medical Center for an examination and admitted for medical treatment.
"Both parents were interviewed in this matter and subsequently transported to the Robert Presley Detention Center (RPDC)."
Police originally thought all of the victims were children but soon discovered seven were adults. Photo / Supplied
The statement added that the pair were charged with violations of California Penal Code Section 206 — Torture and Section 273a (A) — Child Endangerment.
Bail was set at US$9 million each.
State Department of Education records show the family home has the same address as Sandcastle Day School, where David Turpin is listed as principal. In the 2016-17 school year it had an enrollment of six with one student in each of the fifth, sixth, eighth, ninth, 10th and 12th grades.
Neighbours said they were stunned by the arrests. Andrew Santillan, who lives around the corner, heard about the case from a friend.
"I had no idea this was going on," he told the Press-Enterprise of Riverside. "I didn't know there were kids in the house."
Other neighbours described the family as intensely private.
A few years ago, Robert Perkins said he and his mother saw a few family members constructing a Nativity scene in the Turpins' front yard. Perkins said he complimented them on it.
"They didn't say a word," he said.
The Turpins filed for bankruptcy in 2011, stating in court documents they owed between US$100,000 and US$500,000, The New York Times reported. At that time, Turpin worked as an engineer at Northrop Grumman and earned US$140,000 annually and his wife was a homemaker, records showed.
Their bankruptcy lawyer, Ivan Trahan, told the Times he never met the children but the couple "spoke about them highly."
"We remember them as a very nice couple," Trahan said, adding that Louise Turpin told him the family loved Disneyland and visited often.
