For six semesters, a “gaunt” boy who wore the same clothes every day, attended a music course at Mt San Jacinto College in Kentucky.
He was said to have stood apart from his peers in complexion, outlook, and the way he ate. His mother was reportedly waiting for him in the car park as he attended his classes.
Now, that boy’s teachers and fellow students have learnt his true identity. He is the oldest son of David and Louise Turpin, who last week in California were charged with imprisoning and torturing their 13 children – aged two to 29 – within a “house of horrors”.
It was a dark place where the siblings were allegedly chained to beds; made to watch their parents eat; were given only one meal a day; and weren’t allowed to shower more than once a year.
On Sunday, January 14, one of the children – a 17-year-old who looked as if she was 10 – escaped through a window and called emergency services. Police are now combing the place for evidence and the siblings are receiving treatment for extreme malnutrition.
Police last week confirmed that one of the children, a boy, was allowed out of the home. This was to attend university classes with the accompaniment of his mother.
Now, former student Angie Parra has spoken to the media, revealing the sad reality that was this “introverted” boy attending her college.
“He never really wanted to make eye contact with anyone,” Parra told NBC Los Angeles. “There was a sadness in his face and eyes I didn’t understand.”
