Apparently as a punishment for his unemployment, a pensioner in France locked his son in the attic for months.
According to police, the man from Alsace is suspected of detaining his 39-year-old son for at least four months and not having provided enough food.
The police discovered the case because the pensioner's wife alerted the officers after her son hit his father.
The 39-year-old was taken to a hospital in Mulhouse to assess his detention.
The doctors there were appalled by the condition of the extremely emaciated man, the police said.
During the interrogation, the son finally described that he had moved back to his parents' house in Malmerspach about a year ago after he had lost his job.
His father accused him of inaction while looking for a new job and billeted him in the attic as a punishment.
He also forbade him to come down and eat.
The 39-year-old was only able to sneak down at night and eat leftovers.
Finally, in his desperation, he attacked his father.
Icon: The mirror
svv / AFP