Key Facts

• Two boys, aged four and five, were found crying beside a road in southern Portugal near Alcacer do Sal.
• The boys’ mother, Marine R, and her partner, Marc B, were arrested in Fatima, Portugal.
• The court ordered pre-trial detention, meaning the couple will stay in custody until their trial.
• They face charges including aggravated assault, child abandonment, and endangerment.
• The boys have been placed with a French foster family in Lisbon and are expected to return to France.
• The boys lived in Colmar, France, with their mother, while their father had limited visitation rights.
• The father reported the children missing on May 11, which led to a search and arrest warrant.
• The couple has no known connection to Portugal; the woman works as a sexologist, and the partner is a former French police officer.