A French woman and her partner have been ordered to remain in pre-trial detention following the discovery of two young boys abandoned on a roadside in southern Portugal. The children, aged four and five, were found crying near Alcacer do Sal, roughly 100 kilometers south of Lisbon, on Tuesday evening. Authorities apprehended the couple, identified as Marine R. and Marc B., in Fatima two days later.

During their initial court appearance on Saturday, the pair faced charges of child endangerment and abandonment. Additionally, the 55-year-old male suspect, a former French gendarmerie officer, faces a separate charge of aggravated assault. The court proceedings followed a mandatory 48-hour window for judicial review, during which investigators questioned the suspects regarding the circumstances of the incident.

The children, who were reported missing by their father in France on May 11, are currently under the care of a French foster family in Lisbon and are expected to be repatriated. According to accounts provided by the motorist who discovered the boys, the children claimed they had been blindfolded and instructed to search for a hidden toy, only to find their mother gone when they removed the coverings.

Investigations into the couple’s background have revealed no apparent ties to Portugal. The 41-year-old mother, who resided in Colmar, France, reportedly worked as a sexologist. As the legal process continues, the children remain in protective custody while authorities work to finalize their return to France.