Woman arrested after bodies of two children found locked in car

A mother has been arrested on suspicion of murder after the bodies of two young children were found in the back of a locked car in East Sussex. The 43-year-old, named last night by Press Association sources as Fiona Donnison, was held after going to Heathfield police station today to report "an incident", Sussex police said. Officers found the bodies of a boy and a girl, both aged under five, at 11.46am, after they forced entry to a silver Nissan parked at Mill Close, Heathfield. The woman, believed to be from Surrey but with local connections, was taken to Eastbourne district general hospital with "apparent self-harm injuries" to her arms. The suspect was in a stable condition but has yet to be interviewed. Chief Superintendent Robin Smith said he could not say how the children had died, but officers were not looking for anyone else in connection with the deaths. "At about 11am a lady came into Heathfield police station clearly suffering from some distress," he said. "As a result of what she said to us members of my team were sent to a car. Inside that car, tragically and sadly, they found the bodies of two young children, we believe both under the age of five." He said the pair were believed to have been living in Surrey recently but to have been residents of Heathfield in the past. The cause of death was being investigated and postmortem examinations are due to take place tomorrow. Police believe they know who the children are, but the identities have yet to be officially released. Resident Jill Radford, 61, said: "I think there used to be a couple living there until they separated. The house went up for sale sometime before Christmas. "I think there were some young children living there. I could see there were often toys in the front garden." She added that she did not know the family and did not think other neighbours were close to them. A 36-year-old woman who also lives in Mill Close, and who did not wish to be named, told the Argus local newspaper: "People are obviously horrified. It is a house that nobody appears to know who the family are. The rest of the close is very close-knit. People are just really shocked."