Three-year-old twins have been removed from their parents after being found at a playground in Faro “playing alone, barefoot and in the rain” at 2am.
It was only when a young man walked by the playground that someone noticed the twins.
The toddlers are believed to have left their home while their mother was sleeping on Wednesday, and walked 500 metres to a playground, according to a report aired by SIC.
Their ‘rescuer’ tried for help at a nearby school but it was closed. He eventually took the children to his house and called PSP police.
It was only when the twins’ father got home in the early hours of the morning that the parents – who also have 18-month-old twins – are understood to have noticed the children were missing. By this time, authorities had already decided to remove both pairs of twins from the parents’ care.
The CPCJ – the commission for the protection of children and minors – had been monitoring the family for “other cases of negligence”, said the station, and thus decided to temporarily rehome the children at Faro’s Refúgio Aboim Ascensão children’s home.
The youngsters will now remain at the Refúgio for at least six months, only to be returned to their parents’ care if these prove they can “guarantee their children’s security”.
Luís Villas-Boas, the home’s longstanding leader, says he hopes the parents will be punished for their negligence.
“There was an attempt to recover this family, but these kinds of situations keep happening with the children. I hope the courts will deal with this heavy-handedly and remove the children, once and for all, from their parents”.
