German girl, 8. locked away by mother since she was a toddler

Video / NZ HeraldAn eight-year-old girl in Germany has been freed after her mother and grandparents allegedly kept her locked inside their home since she was 18 months old. Maria has been placed with a foster family while police investigate her mother and grandparents for their role in hiding her away. Contact continued until Maria was around six months old, when a note on his windshield from Maria’s mother told him that she was moving the pair to Italy. He was provided with an address in Italy but his suspicions were raised when he saw Maria’s mother in Attendorn in September 2015. He has reportedly said he wants custody of the girl so he can show her the world and lead a “normal family life”.