Three dead babies discovered in boxes in France

LYON, France, Aug 23 (Reuters) French police have discovered the bodies of three babies hidden in boxes in a house in eastern France, a judicial source said today.

The mother of the children, who were born in 2001, 2003 and 2006 and all died shortly after birth, admitted yesterday she tried to hide them and was held for questioning. The case is under investigation.

Her partner discovered the first two bodies yesterday in a state of decomposition in plastic bags inside the boxes. He alerted the police and told them he was not aware the woman had given birth to the babies.

The mother said she hid the bodies in different places, including a refrigerator, to avoid being discovered and brought them with her when they moved house a year ago.

The case is reminiscent of the so-called ''Seoul freezer babies'' story, which made headlines in France last year.

French police last year took French woman Veronique Courjault into custody on suspicion of killing her two babies and storing their corpses in a freezer in the family's apartment in Seoul, South Korea.

Police sources have said Courjault also admitted to killing a third child. Courjault, who has two other children, has explained her actions by saying the pregnancies were unwanted.

She could face life in prison if convicted of murdering her own children.

REUTERS AK BST0035