Horror as police find bodies of five babies at couple’s home in south-east France

Investigators discovered the remains in cardboard boxes at a home in Orange, a city in the Vaucluse region, according to reports

The remains of five babies have been found inside a couple’s residence in south-east France, according to reports from local media.

Officers made the discovery inside cardboard boxes at a property in Orange, a city in the Vaucluse department, as reported on Tuesday morning by French newspaper Le Parisien.

The discovery came after a woman born in 1994 delivered her third child at a hospital on Monday evening. Sources close to the case told the newspaper that this was her third experience of “pregnancy denial”.

Following notification from hospital staff in Orange, police attended the couple’s house. While officers were present, the father reportedly looked through several boxes and uncovered the remains of five infants, reports The Mirror.

The husband then reportedly took the body to the hospital, where staff alerted authorities.

The police searched the couple’s home and discovered fetuses in plastic bags, which had been placed in cardboard boxes.

The couple is said to have two children, aged eight and 12, in addition to the third child born on Monday. It is understood the woman remains in hospital and has not been taken into custody.