Police are on the hunt for three children, thought to have been sleeping in an industrial bin at Maitland, in NSW’s Hunter Valley.
The shabbily-dressed children had been spotted in the area over the last two weeks, so when staff at a store in the small town found a mattress, blankets and pillows in an industrial bin they called police in to investigate.
Police quickly contacted the local waste company to halt bin collection at the store and have stepped up their calls for public assistance in finding the three youngsters.
The three children are described as being a four-year-old boy with a shaved head, a six-year-old boy with a mullet-style haircut and a nine-year-old girl, whose description has not been confirmed.
Anyone with information about the children or their whereabouts is urged to contact Maitland Police Station on (02) 4934 0200, Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or the Department of Community Services on 132 111.