10 April 2023 , 02:47
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Eight members of an infamous 'incest farm' at a remote New South Wales property have been arrested in three states for their heinous crimes.
The family is said to have originated in New Zealand with brother and sister couple Tim and June Colt marrying in the mid-1960s.
Over four generations later, around 38 members of the Colt family - pseudonyms given by courts including their surname - were found by police living in tents and shacks on a southern New South Wales farm, in Australia, in 2012.
The family matriarch, Betty Colt - who is believed to be Tim and June's daughter - is thought to have conceived 12 children together with her brother Charlie. The clan spread across various states in remote locations following the 2012 police raid.
Tim Colt married sister June in 1960s to start the hideous family tree (Supplied)
Betty Colt, the current matriarch, is thought to have conceived 12 children together with her brother Charlie (AAP/PA Images)Betty was flown to Sydney on Friday after NSW Police successfully sought the extradition of all interstate suspects. Eight individuals in total, aged between 29 and 50, were arrested this week after a series of police raids across the country. Only six appeared in court.
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Complex investigations including DNA testing, legal issues and the seriousness of the allegations meant it took six years until any charges were brought, according to detectives.
An official investigation was only opened on July 2012 when a child reported overhearing another child at a local primary school speaking of an unkempt girl, living in the woods, who was pregnant with a child fathered by a brother.
The child overheard the girl state that one of her sisters was pregnant and they did not know which of her brothers was the father.
The family, which expanded to around 40 members from four generations, lived in remote locations in New South WalesThe family grew to nearly 40 members ranging from grandparents to mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles, nephews, brothers and sisters all engaging in various forms of incest.
The horrific discovery was described at the time as the worst case of incest uncovered in Australia and sparked the establishment of Strike Force Hermoyne - an investigation into serious allegations of incest, child sexual assault and neglect on the family's farm.
According to local reports: "Eleven of the children in the camp were the product of a sexual relationship by their mothers with either a brother, father or other close male relative."
Many of the children suffered from deformities and medical problems. Twelve children had facial deformities, speech difficulties and horrific hygiene. They were illiterate, severely malnourished and slept next to buckets of faeces and urine. All but one were inbred.
Many of the children suffered from deformities and they lived in squalor (9NEWS)Police tracked the family down and put several children in foster care. Police later discovered children and adults had regularly engaged in sexual activities, resulting in genetically deformed children.
The family was found living in squalid sheds, tents and caravans without plumbing or running water. They had no access to running water, showers, toilets or hygiene products and most of the children had fungal infections.
Younger members in particular had oddly-formed features, severe learning disabilities and did not know how to use a toilet or loo roll.
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