Portuguese police have arrested a 41-year-old woman and a 55-year-old man on suspicion of child abuse, endangerment, and abandonment after allegedly leaving their two young sons in a woodland as part of a 'game'. The boys, Barthélémy, five, and Zacharie, three, were found wandering a rural road near Alcácer do Sal on Tuesday evening.
The children told authorities they had been blindfolded and told to find a knife buried in the ground. When they removed their blindfolds, their parents had vanished. The boys believed they were taking part in a game called 'drive away the devil' and wandered for hours before being spotted by a local couple, Eugénia and Artur Quintas.
Artur Quintas described the boys as 'crying' and 'terrified', covered in dirt and bruises, with one having an injured knee. They carried only a change of clothes, two pieces of fruit, and two bottles of water. The couple took them home and contacted police, who transported them to hospital for checks. A toxicology report confirmed the boys had not been drugged.
The suspects, identified as Marine and Marc, were arrested in Fátima. A joint investigation with French police revealed that Marine had left France with the children about two weeks ago, and a child abduction report had been filed by the boys' father. The trio entered Portugal on 11 May via Bragança and travelled over 310 miles before abandoning the children.
The boys have been placed in temporary care in Portugal. The grandmother had reported them missing, stating they had been abducted by their mother.
