Authorities said they were alerted after a 17-year-old escaped and called the police after finding a mobile phone in the house in California.

David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, have been charged with nine counts of torture and 10 counts of child endangerment.

Six of the children are minors, including the 17-year-old girls who police initially believed to be 10, and seven were over the age of 18.

All of the malnourished children have been hospitalised and have been freed from the house, local police revealed.

The age of the victims ranges from two to 29.

A neighbour who asked to remain anonymous said the houses in the area had recently been built but that he did not know the family.

As they were rescued the siblings reportedly told that they were starving.

California police said: "Deputies located what they believed to be 12 children inside the house, but were shocked to discover that seven of them were actually adults.

“Further investigation revealed several children shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks in dark and foul-smelling surroundings, but the parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner.

"The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty."

After they are released from hospital the victims will be cared for by Child Protective Services and Adult Protective Services.

It has been revealed that David Turpin’s application to open a private school, the Sandcastle Day School, was approved for the same block as the house.

Mr and Mrs Turpin are due in court on Thursday.

Bail for the pair has been set at £6.52million.