Father arrested as authorities search for three children

A MAN from Jaen has been arrested as police believe he could have something to do with the disappearance of his three children, who he personally reported as missing.
The children, aged three, five and seven, were in the custody of the Junta de Andalucia regional government at a home in La Carolina (Jaen) and disappeared from a nearby park during an authorised and arranged visit from their father.
The 47-year-old man went to inform the police that the children had disappeared, saying simply that he had lost sight of them in the park.
Searches were launched in the area and a national alert put out. Investigators discovered that the father had wanted custody of the children, who were taken into care in December, and began to suspect that he could have involved a third party to help him make them disappear.
The man was found to have camped for a number of days outside the Junta premises in Jaen last week to demand the children’s custody, as it had been announced that they would be sent to a foster family shortly.
Officers also found it strange that the man refused to take part in searches after the children went missing, police sources reported.
As searches continued for the youngsters, Andalucian government delegate in Jaen Purificacion Galvez said that an investigation was underway to find out what happened. Asked whether a home staff member should accompany families on this type of visit, she explained that it was a very complicated thing to organise.