Police in Orange, France, are investigating the discovery of the remains of five deceased infants found by a husband in cardboard boxes on Monday morning. The discovery was made following an argument between the husband and his 32-year-old wife regarding the contents of the boxes.
The wife had reportedly given birth the day prior to the discovery, following a pregnancy she had allegedly denied. She was taken to the hospital after experiencing abdominal pains, while her husband remained at home.
According to an investigating source, the husband looked inside the boxes they had been arguing about and found the five deceased infants. The source indicated that the remains were decomposing and had been present for some time. The husband subsequently contacted the police.
The couple, who have two other children aged eight and twelve, are involved in the inquiry opened by the Carpentras prosecutor's office. Forensic examinations, including autopsies, are scheduled to determine the exact nature of the remains and the circumstances surrounding their deaths. No arrests have been made in connection with the case yet.
The incident in Orange has drawn comparisons to the Dominique Cottrez case. In that instance, Cottrez, a nursing assistant from northern France, confessed to killing eight of her newborn children and hiding their bodies over nearly two decades. She concealed her pregnancies and the deaths, with the first bodies discovered in 2010. Cottrez was found guilty of eight counts of infanticide in 2015 and sentenced to nine years in prison.