Shocking new images have emerged from an apartment in Agioi Anargyroi, a western suburb of Athens, where three children aged 7, 5 and 3 were living surrounded by mold and hazardous makeshift constructions with exposed electrical wiring.
The three children had reportedly been living for years in dangerous and unsanitary conditions. Despite repeated complaints and intervention sessions involving social services, nothing appeared to change inside the apartment.
According to a revealing testimony aired on Greek broadcaster MEGA Channel, the home had been cleaned around a year ago, and essential items had been provided in an effort to improve the children’s living conditions.
That improvement, however, did not last long, and shortly afterward the apartment reportedly returned to a state of severe neglect.
Images Capture Horrific Conditions in Athens Apartment
“A municipal cleaning crew had come and cleaned the entire house. The husband’s sister had also come, as far as I know. They had installed curtains and brought beds for the children, but none of those things are there anymore — they were thrown away,” the witness said.
According to MEGA, the children’s 31-year-old mother had filed a domestic violence threat complaint against the 37-year-old father around six months ago.
Social services from the municipality reportedly attempted to find accommodation for the mother and children so they could be relocated, but those efforts were unsuccessful.
The two girls and the young boy remain hospitalized at a children’s hospital until they can be transferred to a protective care facility.
“There were times when I saw one of the children naked on the balcony. It was a cold day. I had tried to give them some toys and clothes, but they only wanted branded clothes. We also noticed that the husband’s sister had brought toys for the children, and two days later we saw them thrown in the garbage,” a neighbor of the family said.
When social workers visited the apartment for welfare inspections, the 37-year-old father would often refuse them entry and, according to witnesses, behave aggressively.
At the same time, he reportedly refused psychological monitoring offered through social services.
The parents remain in custody until Tuesday, when they are expected to stand trial before Greece’s fast-track court system on charges of exposing minors to danger.
