She claimed they had sore throats and was giving them medication, although she did not get a doctor to visit them.

The woman, who cannot be named due to a court order, was arrested last Sunday when the police staked out her Birkirkara residence since she had not been to the police station to sign, as she was ordered to do by the court.

She is being accused of abandoning her six-year-old daughter. The girl, who had been locked out on a balcony, was found by the police. She was both filthy and hungry. In previous sittings, neighbours had explained to the court that they used to lower food down to the girl in a bucket.

Presiding magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera had ordered the woman’s arrest when she was nowhere to be found after the first sitting in court.

Eventually, the woman showed up of her own will and was ordered to sign at the Birkirkara police station every day. When she did not turn up at the police station to sign, police staked out her residence and arrested her as soon as she walked out.

She made a scene in court last Monday, calling the police inspector a liar and was yesterday given the chance to tell her side of the story. After hearing the woman’s explanation for not going to sign, magistrate Scerri Herrera ordered a doctor to visit the children who the woman said had sore throats. The accused is to be kept in custody till today.