Social Policy Minister Marin Piletic said on Wednesday that the family in whose garden the bodies of two infants were found on Tuesday was not under the supervision of social services, while Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said police had received a report from a person familiar with the family.

Following the discovery of the buried bodies of two infants in the yard of a family in the municipality of Ljubescica, police have filed criminal charges against the parents, who have been detained and questioned since Wednesday morning.

Piletic said the family had not been supervised by social services, nor had social workers taken any action in relation to them.

“Their way of life was unusual”

He said one child had been taken away from the family, given a guardian and was now safe and under the protection of a social services centre. The child had not been registered in any official file, he added.

“From what we have learnt from the media, their way of life was unusual. Society, the family and people close to them have reacted. We now have the opportunity to ensure that the child, who has received the necessary protection, grows up in normal conditions,” said Piletic.

Bozinovic said the police had received a report from someone familiar with the family who was concerned about “strange occurrences in the family.”

One child is alive and has been removed from the family

He added that the Varazdin police have filed a criminal complaint and that the interrogation of the suspects and possibly other members of the extended family will take place on Wednesday. He assumes that the State Attorney’s office will request pre-trial detention for the parents.

He said that gross neglect of a child, especially resulting in death, is one of the most serious charges.

The State Attorney’s office will decide whether such a charge will apply to all three children. Bozinovic doubts this, however, as one child is still alive and has been removed from the family.

When asked whether there will be further investigations if it turns out that the parents are members of a religious sect, Bozinovic said he would “not anticipate membership of a religious organisation or further steps if the investigating authorities take them.”