In the southern French city of Orange, police discovered bones and a decomposed body believed to belong to five infants, Reuters reports, citing sources in the prosecutor’s office.

The discovery came after a 32-year-old woman, who already has two children aged 8 and 9, gave birth on Sunday.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the woman’s partner, having learned about her pregnancy at a very late stage and being in a state of severe shock, began searching the house. During the search, he found objects resembling human remains, after which he reported it to the authorities through the hospital where the woman was staying.

After searching the couple’s home, police on Monday opened a criminal investigation on suspicion of murder.

A forensic doctor who arrived at the scene preliminarily determined that the bones and decomposed body found were likely the remains of five infants.

The man, who is also 32, told investigators that he knew nothing about his partner’s possible pregnancies.

The prosecutor’s office instructed child protection services to urgently assess the situation of the couple’s two children, aged eight and nine. In addition, a temporary decision was made regarding the baby born on Sunday to place the child under state protection until the case is referred to a juvenile court judge.

The child’s mother remains in hospital. She was taken there a day after giving birth at home. At this point, investigators have not yet been able to question her. It has not been reported whether she has been provided with a lawyer.

The prosecutor’s office ordered an autopsy of the body found. The discovered bones will be sent for anthropological examination to a specialized laboratory.