A 9-Year-old Boy Lived Alone In An Unheated Apartment for 2 Years While Mother Lived Miles Away

In a troubling case from Nersac, France, a nine-year-old boy was left to fend for himself in an unheated apartment for two years while his mother moved in with her boyfriend. From 2020 to 2022, this child struggled to survive alone while his mother, just 3.1 miles away, only visited sporadically.

The boy’s existence was marked by neglect, living without basic necessities such as hot water or heating. His diet included cake, canned goods, and stolen tomatoes — which he scavenged from his neighbor’s balcony.

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Barbara Couturier, the mayor of Nersac, recounted, “I met his mom in May 2022. She came to tell us that she had financial problems, and we gave her four vouchers for food, but she took some processed food products instead so that got me suspicious.”

This suspicion eventually led to police intervention.

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Despite the dire situation at home, the boy maintained a facade of normalcy. He attended school regularly, kept his grades up, and even completed his homework.

Couturier remarked on this resilience, stating that he appeared to be a good student throughout the ordeal. His ability to hide his struggles allowed him to go unnoticed for an alarming amount of time.

Couturier’s concerns were validated when reported suspicions about a child living alone began circulating.

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She connected the dots and contacted the police. The boy was taken into care on September 19, 2022, after authorities became aware of his unacceptable living conditions.

Thankfully, he was rescued from this nightmare. His mother faced the consequences, receiving an 18-month prison sentence for abandoning her son.

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Her lack of involvement was stark, as she lived with her partner in a separate apartment and would visit her child only “from time to time.” This situation raises serious questions about how neglect can fly under the radar at times.

It’s not just a one-off case, either. Research from the University of Nottingham shows that child abandonment is a significant issue across Europe.

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While only 4% of kids in Western Europe face abandonment, that number jumps to 32% in Central and Eastern Europe. That’s quite the crisis we need to address.

Neighbors felt guilty for not noticing sooner. One local said, “When there was a family and a village around the family, it didn’t matter too much.”

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It seems like community vigilance has taken a backseat in our fast-paced lives.

Mayor Couturier pointed out that the boy’s attempt to isolate himself was most likely a form of self-preservation.

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“I think it was also a kind of protection that he put around himself to say ‘everything is fine,'” she said.

A classmate shared that the boy often ate his meals alone at school and took the bus by himself.

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Can you imagine that level of isolation? The trial revealed that the mother’s claims of caring for her son were as flimsy as they come, with evidence showing her minimal involvement.

“He told his mates that he ate his meals alone,” said the classmate.

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Now under the care of social services, the boy is beginning to recover from his harrowing experience. Mayor Couturier noted that the child is adjusting and is “safe now.”

While the boy’s resilience is evident, it serves as a stark reminder of the importance of community awareness in preventing such neglect from happening in the future.

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This should should have definitely never happened in the first place!