EXCLUSIVE
An Australian-born mother and her migrant husband who allegedly beat and tortured their 14 children at a squalid ‘house of horrors’ presented themselves as ‘the perfect family’.
But NSW Police allege the couple subjected their children, aged from their teens down to a six-month-old baby, to unspeakable abuse.
Daily Mail Australia can reveal police allege much of the abuse occurred inside a ‘dirty and filthy’ two-storey brick home on an otherwise friendly suburban Sydney street.
The home – allegedly damaged by the mother – now sits abandoned and uninhabitable in a suburb that cannot be named for legal reasons.
Both parents were recently charged with a total of 60 offences, which relate to a vast array of allegations, including that some kids were whipped and beaten.
The children were banned from going to school and sometimes allegedly fed pet-quality food.
The charges the parents face include serious assault offences, indecent assault of a child under 16; taking and detaining to gain advantage for sexual, psychological and physical abuse; and intentionally sexually touching a child under 10 years old.
The mother, 44, is also charged with destroying and damaging the home where the children were allegedly abused, knowingly concealing alleged child abuse and failing to inform police.
Neighbours last night broke their silence about what they knew of the family from outside their now-abandoned and uninhabitable home.
The Sydney house where 14 children were locked inside, rarely coming out except to go to the mosque, and allegedly beaten and abused by their parents
The house where the family lived for up to five years is now abandoned and ‘uninhabitable’ with leaking sewage pipes, damaged doors and a ‘filthy’ interior. Above is an old real estate photo
What neighbours know about Sydney ‘house of horrors’
Daily Mail Australia can reveal the father, 56, is a migrant who fled his Arabic-speaking home country after refusing to serve in the nation’s army – a crime that carried a death sentence at the time.
After serving time at in a detention centre, he became a permanent resident and married an Australian woman of Anglo background, who converted to Islam.
They allegedly kept the family in ‘atrocious conditions’ at the Sydney home.
The mother was heard shouting at the children from inside the house and rarely seen outside the chained and bolted fence, except wearing an Islamic niqab.
One neighbour said that the father repaired washing machines and other white goods ‘to help pay the bills’ and was defensive about his children not going to school.
He was allegedly traumatised about his past, but ‘was smiling and helpful’ to neighbours and ‘always walking up the street offering assistance’.
But one resident said: ‘I knew there were 13 or 14 kids in there we never saw or heard them’.
The house – which has heavily fortified windows – had 14 children living inside who rarely went outdoors, did not attend school and were allegedly starved and beaten
Read Related Also: Woman who blackmailed man she met on a dating app and threatened to report him for rape unless he paid her £5,000 after they had consensual sex is jailed for two years
A rusty shed in the yard of the ‘house of horrors’ – which sits in an otherwise friendly Sydney suburb
Another neighbour said: ‘The windows were always covered and we only saw the children inside when once they waved from the balcony.
‘Except the boys who did go out with (the dad) and the older girls going to prayers with (the father) chasing them down the street.
‘They had chickens, a sheep and rabbits, which escaped into our garden, and the father was always apologetic to us.
‘He was very strict but said he (believed he) was creating a perfect place for all the kids.
‘He was very friendly and brought over sweets and gifts on (Islamic) holidays.
‘When the house became uninhabitable it took him a long time to find anything suitable for so many kids.’
The now abandoned house in Sydney (above) is slated to be knocked down after it was occupied for years by 14 children and allegedly abused there by their parents, aged 56 and 44
The 14 children were kept inside the house, seen once or twice waving from a top window (above), but allegedly assaulted or abused inside, police say
While the children were kept mostly inside, they had rabbits, chicken and even a sheep in what the father portrayed as a utopia for raising a family
The parents are alleged to have committed offences against their children at six different locations between 2010 and 2022, although police say most of the charges against them stem from incidents inside the ‘house of horrors’.
A real estate agent connected with the property claimed the family was eventually evicted, but while they had lived there the dad gave the impression he was ‘the perfect father of the perfect family’.
We never saw the kids and we rarely saw the wife, and then she was always heavily covered … her face,’ he said.
The property specialist said the dwelling had suffered up to $200,000 worth of damage’ and was ‘ready for a knock down and rebuild’.
The parents have been charged with 60 alleged offences including child sexual abuse, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, but neighbours remember the dad as friendly and helpful
Another neighbour described the father as ‘a beautiful man’, who always left things on your doorstep. If he got anything free, he’d give it to you.’
Police removed the children from their parents after the two eldest girls, now aged in their late teens, began secretly recording video evidence of the alleged abuse and emailed authorities.
The charged parents are currently before the courts.
Prosecutors have indicated some of the charges against them will be dropped.
The case returns to court at a later date.
