Turpin family latest: Aunt of 13 malnourished children found in California home says 'sister never let me see her kids'

'She wouldn't even accept my Facebook request,' says Elizabeth Flores

The aunt of 13 children found malnourished in a filthy and darkened home said her sister “never let us talk to her kids” and admitted that “something didn’t seem right about her parenting”.

Police rescued David and Louise Turpin‘s children from a “foul-smelling” house, where some had been shackled to beds, after one of the siblings escaped and raised the alarm.

The children ranged in age from two to 29 but appeared much younger due to malnutrition, police said. The Turpins have been charged with torture and child endangerment.

Elizabeth Jane Flores, Louise Turpin’s younger sister, told Daily Mail TV: “She never let us talk to her kids. She wouldn’t even accept my Facebook request. We all wondered what was going on.

“My parents booked several flights to go see them but when they got there they wouldn’t tell them where to go and my parents left crying every time.

“They died before they got to see them again. It’s just heartbreaking and I’m so embarrassed about all of this.”

The mother-of-seven and Christian motivational speaker added: “Something didn’t seem right about her parenting but never would I have expected it to be like this.”

The conditions inside the Turpins’ Perris, California home were revealed after their 17-year-old daughter escaped through a window and called police using a mobile phone she had found inside.

Officers responding on Sunday initially thought she was just 10 years old due to her “slightly emaciated” condition.

Greg Fellows, of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, praised her “courage” and called the situation “horrific”.

He added: “If you can imagine being 17 years old and appearing to be a 10-year-old, being chained to a bed, being malnourished, and injuries associated with that, I would call that torture.”

Another of Louise Turpin’s sisters, Teresa Robinette, told NBC News: “We always thought she was living the perfect life. She would tell us they went to Disneyland all the time. They would go to Vegas.”

Ms Turpin did not attend her parents’ funerals and had little contact with her family, Ms Robinette said.

David Turpin’s parents said they had not visited the family for at least four years, and were “surprised and shocked” by the allegations.

They said they believed the Turpins had been called by God to have so many children, who were given “very strict” homeschooling that included memorising long Bible passages.

When approached by neighbours the children reacted “like they had never seen people before”, one claimed.

David, 57, and Louise Turpin, 49, are due to appear in court on Thursday. They each face nine charges of torture and 10 of child endangerment, and are being held on $9m (£6.5m) bail.