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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Bodies of two children discovered | Bodies of two children discovered |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The bodies of two children, both under six years old, have been found at an address in south London. | |
| They were discovered by police shortly after officers arrested a man, aged 60, and a woman in her 20s in Melfort Road, Thornton Heath at 0930 BST. | |
| A girl who was with them, also aged under six, was taken into care and has been receiving hospital treatment. | A girl who was with them, also aged under six, was taken into care and has been receiving hospital treatment. |
| The couple have been taken to south London police stations where they remain in custody. | The couple have been taken to south London police stations where they remain in custody. |
| A member of the public alerted police over concerns about the girl's treatment by the couple, a Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said. | A member of the public alerted police over concerns about the girl's treatment by the couple, a Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said. |
| This is a suspicious incident at the moment Supt Chris Boulet, Croydon Police | This is a suspicious incident at the moment Supt Chris Boulet, Croydon Police |
| She said police were informed that the girl was being given an alcoholic drink. | |
| The spokeswoman said "as a result of immediate inquiries", officers went straight to a nearby address and found the two dead children. | The spokeswoman said "as a result of immediate inquiries", officers went straight to a nearby address and found the two dead children. |
| Supt Chris Boulet, from Croydon police, said the investigation was at an early stage and it was currently an inquiry into suspicious deaths, rather than a murder inquiry. | |
| "Clearly, this is a tragic set of circumstances and we are doing our best to investigate what has happened here and we'll be making full inquiries to find out exactly what has gone on." | |
| A post-mortem examination is being carried out to determine how the children died. | |
| Neighbours shocked | |
| Police would not confirm if either the man or the woman was related to any of the children involved. | Police would not confirm if either the man or the woman was related to any of the children involved. |
| Supt Boulet said: "This is a suspicious incident at the moment, obviously there are a lot of inquiries to be done, this is an early stage in the investigation, but we will find the answers." | Supt Boulet said: "This is a suspicious incident at the moment, obviously there are a lot of inquiries to be done, this is an early stage in the investigation, but we will find the answers." |
| You do not expect anything like this to happen so close to home Ashif Shanji, shopkeeper | |
| Ben Solomon, 63, a resident of the road, said he had not known the children even though he lived only a couple of doors away. | |
| He said neighbours were "shocked' and very upset by the news. | |
| "These kids haven't even seen life yet and then this happens." | |
| Ashif Shanji, 32, from Norbury, who owns a watch shop opposite the address where the children were found, said he did not know the children, but he believed they were fairly new to the area. | |
| "It is very disturbing and it has knocked everyone to hear about this. You do not expect anything like this to happen so close to home." |