Two Bulgarian Children Who Died in Cyprus Had Been Trapped in Their Father's Locked Car for Over Three Hours

The Bulgarian children who died in Cyprus had been trapped in their father’s locked car for over three hours, according to the online edition of the Cypriot newspaper Phileleftheros.

Cypriot authorities are investigating the deaths of two children from Bulgaria.

The two boys—aged 8 and 10—were found dead on June 28 in a locked car left in a field near a residential area in the vicinity of the British base in Dhekelia. After receiving a report, emergency crews arrived at the scene, but medical personnel determined that the boys had suffered severe heat-related injuries, including burns and severe muscle stiffness.

The children had arrived on the island in mid-May with their father to spend time with him and the woman he was living with. The man worked as a welder in the city of Limassol.

According to the information available so far, on the day of the tragedy, the father and his wife left for work and left the children alone. A surveillance camera recorded the boys getting into the car and playing inside it. At one point, the camera—which is motion-activated—stopped transmitting. Due to circumstances that remain unclear, the children remained in the car for over three hours and were found by their stepmother at 5:30 p.m. She immediately alerted the police. Since there was no key to the car, the windows had to be broken.

The children’s father and their stepmother were arrested.

Investigators are checking for a malfunction in the car’s interior locking system.

The investigation is also seeking to establish why the children left their father's apartment. According to sources close to the family, there had reportedly been a dispute with another resident in the apartment building who objected to the children's presence there, Phileleftheros reports.

The children's father and his partner appeared before a court yesterday while still in a state of shock. The court ordered that they be remanded in custody for three days.

The investigation is being conducted by detectives from the British Sovereign Base Areas, as the car in which the children were found was parked within the Dhekelia base. The apartment building where the family had been staying is located in the Republic of Cyprus. Investigators have already taken statements from 25 people. They are also expected to seek assistance from the Cypriot police and the Bulgarian authorities so that the children's mother, who is in Bulgaria, can provide a statement, according to Phileleftheros.