{"id":3204,"date":"2026-05-22T19:56:57","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T19:56:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/parents-who-abandoned-kids-in-woods-in-sick-game-found-sipping-drinks-at-cafe\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T19:56:57","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T19:56:57","slug":"parents-who-abandoned-kids-in-woods-in-sick-game-found-sipping-drinks-at-cafe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/parents-who-abandoned-kids-in-woods-in-sick-game-found-sipping-drinks-at-cafe\/","title":{"rendered":"Parents who &#8216;abandoned kids in woods in sick game&#8217; found sipping drinks at cafe"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_1c1e1b\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">Mum Marine Rousseau, 41, and stepdad Marc Ballabriga, 55, were said to be &#8216;relaxing&#8217; at a caf\u00e9 when they were arrested on suspicion of deliberately abandoning their childen<\/h2>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37195138\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The two young boys were found walking along a rural road near Alcacer do Sal, Portugal\" loading=\"eager\"  src=\"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0_kids-in-woods-in-sick-game-found-sipping-drinks-at-cafe_0350JPG.jpg\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"The two young boys were found walking along a rural road near Alcacer do Sal, Portugal\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">The two young boys were found walking along a rural road near Alcacer do Sal, Portugal<cite aria-label=\"Image: Google Maps\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: Google Maps)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A mum and stepdad accused of <a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"abandoning their children in the woods Link opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/news\/world-news\/parents-child-abuse-arrest-portugal-37190187\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">abandoning their children in the woods <\/a>after telling them they were playing a &#8216;game&#8217; were sitting &#8216;calmly&#8217; in a caf\u00e9 when they were arrested, it has emerged.<!-- --><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Marine Rousseau and Marc Ballabriga were detained by police on Thursday, two days after allegedly leaving five-year-old son Barth\u00e9l\u00e9my, and three-year-old Zacharie to fend for themselves in the <a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"PortugueseLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/portugal\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Portuguese<\/a> countryside.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The children had appeared &#8220;distressed&#8221; and were clutching just a water bottle and some fruit when they were discovered on a rural road near the town of Alcacer do Sal on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">After police launched a manhunt, their car was spotted yesterday outside a caf\u00e9 in the city of F\u00e1tima, about 112 miles north of where the kids were found.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37190278\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37190278\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Barth\u00e9l\u00e9my, five, and Zacharie, three, were allegedly abandoned by their parents who told them they were playing a 'game'\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4_MBP_CHP_Parents-abandon-young-brothers-in-woods_0333JPG.jpg\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Barth\u00e9l\u00e9my, five, and Zacharie, three, were allegedly abandoned by their parents who told them they were playing a 'game'\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Barth\u00e9l\u00e9my, five, and Zacharie, three, were allegedly abandoned by their parents who told them they were playing a &#8216;game&#8217;<cite aria-label=\"Image: GNR\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: GNR)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_9d2dcd\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\"><a target=\"_blank\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" data-tmdatatrack=\"read-more\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37190187\" data-tmdatatrack-source=\"editorial\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/news\/world-news\/parents-child-abuse-arrest-portugal-37190187\" tabindex=\"0\">Key new detail emerges after parents accused of abandoning children in woods during &#8216;game&#8217;<\/a><\/span><\/span><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_9d2dcd\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\"><a target=\"_blank\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" data-tmdatatrack=\"read-more\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37187404\" data-tmdatatrack-source=\"editorial\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/money\/heatwave-trigger-super-busy-bank-37187404\" tabindex=\"0\">Heatwave to trigger super busy bank holiday getaway &#8211; all you need to know<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Now, detectives have revealed how the couple were sitting in a caf\u00e9 and had made little effort to avoid being spotted on the day they were arrested.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Military police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Canat\u00e1rio told Portuguese television that Rousseau, 41, and Ballabriga, 55, had spent hours &#8220;relaxing&#8221; at the caf\u00e9 terrace enjoying their drinks before police arrived at the scene.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He added that the two suspects &#8211; who were arrested on suspicion of child abuse, endangerment, and abandonment &#8211; &#8220;have not been very cooperative&#8221;, describing them as &#8220;reserved&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The children\u2019s father, who had reported them missing from their home in France 10 days before the incident, is already on his way to Portugal to claim the two boys after they were placed in temporary care.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37190279\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37190279\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The boys' dad is reportedly on his way to Portugal to take them home to France\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4_MBP_CHP_Parents-abandon-young-brothers-in-woods_0332JPG.jpg\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"The boys' dad is reportedly on his way to Portugal to take them home to France\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">The boys&#8217; dad is reportedly on his way to Portugal to take them home to France<cite aria-label=\"Image: GNR\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: GNR)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">On the day of the incident, Rousseau is reported to have told her two sons that they were going to play a game to find a &#8216;hidden toy&#8217;, which involved leaving them blindfolded as they dug in the ground with their hands.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">When the children finally removed their blindfolds and opened their eyes, the mother, stepdad, and the car had allegedly vanished.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Several hours, later they were found by Alexandre Quintas, a local baker and father-of-nine who was driving to work at the time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He took the boys to the bakery to look after them, telling Portuguese news site Observador: &#8220;We asked them if they liked ice cream. And we gave them something to eat and some toys to keep them occupied.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Alexandre and his mother Eug\u00e9nia Quintas were finally able to communicate with the boys after finding a local <a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/doctor-who\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">doctor who<\/a> spoke French, and the five-year-old explained that they had been left alone in the &#8220;forest&#8221; by their parents. Eug\u00e9nia said: &#8220;On them they had an orange, a pear and a bottle of water each&#8221;.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/news\/world-news\/parents-abandoned-kids-woods-game-37194988\" target=\"_blank\">Source link<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mum Marine Rousseau, 41, and stepdad Marc Ballabriga, 55, were said to be &#8216;relaxing&#8217; at<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3205,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4_MBP_CHP_Parents-abandon-young-brothers-in-woods_0333JPG.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3204","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3204"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3204\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3204"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3204"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}