A French mother who allegedly abandoned her two young children in a forest in Portugal while blindfolded was arrested with her former law enforcement boyfriend while eating at a café near Libson.
Marine Rousseau, 41, was taken into custody Thursday with Marc Ballabriga, 55, two days after the couple allegedly dumped her helpless 3- and 5-year-old children in a remote forest and left, according to Portuguese and French media.
„They stayed sitting and didn’t seem nervous,“ café owner Jorge Lopes told the news outlet. „They were searched and handcuffed without any stress at all. When I saw them so at ease in front of the authorities, I was astonished. It was as if they didn’t have blood running through their veins.“
The boys were found crying and alone 125 miles away, MetroUK reported.
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„Given the situation of evident vulnerability, the children were taken to the home of a local resident, where they remained and received initial care in the presence of the officers until they were transferred to a hospital unit,“ Portuguese authorities said in a statement.
The two boys were in good health and were discharged from hospital on Thursday,“ Portugal’s Public Ministry said.
The couple face child endangerment and abandonment charges. Ballabriga — a former French policeman who quit the force in 2010 — faces an additional aggravated assault charge.
They were ordered held pending trial.
Rousseau’s sons were rescued by Artur Quintas, a local baker who spotted them „screaming and crying“ while frantically stumbling along a main road on May 19, the New York Post reported.
They were carrying backpacks stuffed only with clothes, water and snacks.
Quintas recalled the older brother telling him that their mother and her boyfriend allegedly took them into the forest and covered their eyes as part of a „game.“ When they removed their blindfolds, both adults had vanished.
The pair have since been placed in temporary foster care.
Their biological father — who reported them missing on May 11 — is working to bring them back to France.
„It’s only a matter of days before I get my children back,“ he told French broadcaster Ici Alsace TV on Monday. „I think about them every second since the Colmar police station contacted me to tell me they were missing. My children will have to rebuild their lives, just as I rebuilt mine.
„And they don’t need to be constantly reminded of this tragedy.“
Mother, boyfriend allegedly abandoned blindfolded young sons in remote forest as part of ‘game’: reports 2026 IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-05-26 22:37:30 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
