FRENCH prosecutors have attacked a father's claim that he had no idea a baby girl was living in the boot of his wife's car.
The dehydrated little girl, aged between 15 and 23 months, was found by mechanics on Friday when her mother brought the car to a garage in Terrasson, in central France.
The girl's mother, 45, and her 40-year-old partner were arrested and charged on Sunday with child abuse and endangering a minor.
The two are facing up to 10 years in prison for child abuse.
The mother told police that she had given birth in secret and hidden the baby's existence from everyone, including her partner, the girl's father.
The couple had three other children - a four-year-old girl and two boys aged nine and 10 - who were handed over to social services following their parents' arrest.
The couple were both of Portuguese origin and both unemployed.
At a court hearing yesterday, the father repeated that the mother had hidden the child's existence from himself and their families.
Investigators told the court they found it very hard to believe that he would have not known of the child living in his home for almost two years.
"Did he close his eyes," the prosecutor asked. "Is he partly or fully behind this extraordinary lie about an unwanted child?"
The judge has ordered a broadening of the investigation into the case.
The little girl is in hospital where doctors say she is suffering from delayed growth and mental problems.
Police said one of the mechanics heard "bizarre noises, like moans" coming from the car boot and opened it to discover the girl, who was naked, lying in her own excrement, dehydrated and feverish.
The girl "was hidden, it seems since birth, and more seriously, she is suffering from significant (developmental) delays," local prosecutor Jean-Pierre Laffite said.
The situation "defies belief," he said.
The mechanic who found the girl, Guillaume Iguacel, said he was still reeling from the discovery.
"I'm still having trouble sleeping, it was a horrifying sight, seeing this little girl in her own excrement, not able to hold up her head, white as a sheet," he said.
Mr Iguacel said the girl's mother appeared to have little concern for her daughter.
"We were deeply shocked because she didn't find this abnormal. We told her to remove the little girl (from the boot) and give her something to drink right away," he said.
The couple, who were both of Portuguese origin and both unemployed, lived in the village of Brignac, about 10 kilometres from the garage where the baby was found.
Neighbours told French media the mother had been behaving strangely and was seen spending an unusual amount of time in the car.
"We had the impression this woman lived in her car. She never left it," a neighbour identified as Pascale told Le Parisien newspaper.
"I remember seeing her several times a week with her car parked in a lot about 200 metres from her home. The boot was always open. I was wondering what she could be doing," she said.
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