Police Dogs to Search Turpin House Looking for Bodies of Dead Children
Investigators fear some children may have died in 'house of horrors'
© press
Police are planning on sending search dogs into the Turpin family "house of horrors" to look for the bodies of dead children, according to reports.
The Turpins have been launched into the spotlight after parents David and Louise have been accused of imprisoning and torturing their 13 Children.
Investigators now fear there may have been more children who didn't make it out alive, with their deaths being covered up by the oddball couple.
California’s Riverside County Sheriff's Homicide Detectives will now send in highly trained cadaver dogs to search for missing children's remains in unexplored parts of the homes such as wall cavities.
Officers stated that when they entered the suburban home in Perris, California they found several of the 13 siblings "shackled to their beds" in "foul-smelling" conditions.
Thye also reported that the home was "full of feces" with dead cats and dogs laying rotting on the floor.
Express reports: Authorities want to know if there may have been other children, sources familiar with the investigation told Crime Watch Daily.
Police chief Captain Gregg Fellows said the children had suffered “torture” at the hands of their parents.
© press
He said: “If you can imagine being 17 years old and appearing to be a 10-year-old, being chained to a bed and being malnourished and injuries associated with that, I would call that torture.”
The Turpin parents isolated their 13 kids from the world, home-schooling them and forcing them to stay awake all night and sleep during the day to keep them hidden, it is alleged.
David Turpin has also been accused of committing "lewd acts against children."
© press
As it is revealed Louise Turpin hoped to have a 14th child to expand the Turpin family, police are now reportedly fearful the ‘House of Horrors’ couple could have had more children who died and were secretly buried.
Detectives also want to DNA test the rescued siblings to make sure they are all related, according to sources.
© press
Police dogs could now be sent in to scour the home in Perris, California, on the hunt for bodies in case the sick couple had more than 13 sons and daughters.
The revelation comes as neighbors described a previous home littered with feces and dead animals.
© press
Ricky Vinyard, a tree feller from Rio Vista, said: “It was waist-deep in filth. There were dead dogs and cats in there.”
He told the Los Angeles Times how he found two Chihuahuas that had survived by eating waste from a mound of soiled nappies in a trailer behind the property where the children slept.
“There were no beds, just mattresses,” he said.
© press
The parents, who were charged with multiple counts of torture, child abuse, and false imprisonment, gave little food to their children, ranging in age from two to 29 years old, according to prosecutors, who said the abuse may have gone on for years.
The couple even taunted their offspring by displaying desserts that they were not allowed to eat.
© press
Although their motives were still unclear, the couple may have denied the children food as a way to weaken them and assert power.
The children were also shackled and beaten for perceived minor infractions, authorities said.
© press
Jose Medina told The Telegraph: “What happened in the city of Perris was tragic, and it was horrific. And I would like to try to do everything I can to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.”
The Turpins' 13 children, aged between two and 29, had all, except the eldest, been exclusively home-schooled - meaning that, under California law, there was no outside contact.
READ MORE: Turpin Parents Wanted 14 Children to Become 'Reality TV Stars and Get Rich'
“One of the reasons this went undetected was because the parents could keep the children hidden from the public,” said Mr. Medina.
“So I’m looking at what the state can do so that kids can no longer be kept in captivity.”
© press
Two million children in the US are home-schooled, representing three percent of all American youngsters, according to the Mike Smith, president of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA).
The trend began in the 1970s but has increased in recent years.
