Thirteen Siblings Found Chained And Starving In California Home As Parents Arrested On Torture Charges

I remember when evil Josef Fritzl was exposed as a despicable monster.

In April 2008, a woman named Elisabeth Fritzl claimed she had been held captive for 24 years.

Shockingly, her abuser was her own father.

Josef Fritzl locked doors in a concealed corridor part of the basement area of his large family house.

He physically assaulted, sexually abused, and raped Elisabeth numerous times during her imprisonment. The abuse by her father resulted in the birth of seven children.

After he was convicted and sentenced to life in prison I thought never again.

We cannot let this evil lurk in the shadows.

But sadly I was wrong.

It has emerged that thirteen siblings were found chained to their beds in their family home.

The family, from Perris, California, were found by police from Riverside County Sheriff’s Department on Sunday morning. It is not known how long they were chained, padlocked and shackled before they were discovered.

This were rescued after a daring escape by one brave sister. The sister broke out of the home, grabbed a cell phone and called 911.

The thirteen brothers and sisters were all extremely malnourished and pleaded with officers for food and water after they were freed, police say.

Authorities arrested their parents David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, before charging them with torture and child endangerment.

It can now be revealed the pair filed for bankruptcy back in 2011. They were $500,000 in debt, despite David Turpin earning $140,000 a year as an engineer for a top defense contractor.

Bizarrely, the parents loved taking their family to Disneyland and posed for photos to appear united.

The siblings, aged from two to 29 years old, have been taken to hospital.

‘The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty. Perris Station Detectives were dispatched to the residence for further investigation,’ police said.

‘Child Protective Services (CPS) and Adult Protective Services (APS) arrived to assist in the investigation. The victims were provided with food and beverages after they claimed to be starving.’

Neighbors say they family were weird and reclusive – some even commented that they did not even know children lived in the home.

Housewife Wendy Martinez, 41, who lives in a home behind them told the DailyMail.com she saw four of the children kneeling in the front yard late at night at the end of October.

She admits they looked emaciated and pale.

‘They were on their knees, four little kids, and they were just rolling on the grass. It was odd at that time of night.

‘Their mother was in the archway, I just remember the mother in the archway, and I said, hi. There was like no movement, not even to look over to see who’s saying hi, like if they were told not to speak to anybody. ‘

Asked whether she thought the children needed help, she told DailyMail.com: ‘Honestly, I didn’t see like they needed help.’

Others said they had seen the children digging for food in the garbage bins, but had not taken notice as it did not look sinister.

Another neighbor, Andria Valdez, said she had seen the children before, joking that they were like the vampire family in the Twilight books and films because they were ‘really, really pale’ and ‘only came out at night’.

Meanwhile David Turpin’s parents, James and Betty Turpin, told ABC News they were ‘surprised and shocked’ at the news.

The couple, who live in West Virginia, said they had not visited the family for four or five years.

They said they had spoken to them on the phone, although not with their grandchildren.

State records appear to suggest David Turpin home-schooled his six children at their address, calling it Sandcastle Day School.