A mother and stepfather accused of abandoning their children in the woods after telling them they were playing a 'game' were sitting calmly in a cafe when they were arrested, authorities have revealed.
The Incident
Marine Rousseau, 41, and Marc Ballabriga, 55, were detained by police on Thursday, two days after allegedly leaving their five-year-old son Barthelemy and three-year-old Zacharie to fend for themselves in the Portuguese countryside. The children were found distressed on a rural road near Alcacer do Sal, clutching only a water bottle and some fruit.
Arrest at a Cafe
After a manhunt, the couple's car was spotted outside a cafe in Fatima, about 112 miles north of where the children were found. Military police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Canatario told Portuguese television that Rousseau and Ballabriga had spent hours relaxing at the cafe terrace, enjoying drinks before police arrived. He described the suspects as reserved and not very cooperative.
The 'Game'
On the day of the incident, Rousseau allegedly told her sons they were going to play a game to find a hidden toy, leaving them blindfolded and digging in the ground with their hands. When the children removed their blindfolds, their mother, stepfather, and car had vanished. Hours later, they were found by Alexandre Quintas, a local baker and father of nine, who took them to his bakery and cared for them. With the help of a French-speaking doctor, the five-year-old explained they had been left alone in the forest.
Father on His Way
The children's father, who had reported them missing from their home in France 10 days earlier, is traveling to Portugal to claim the boys, who are now in temporary care.
