A group of women and their children who were reported missing in Germany have been located in Malta, the police in the Mediterranean island said on Wednesday, dpa reported.
The investigations were sparked on Tuesday when a six-year-old German boy was found walking in a field in Gozo, a small island adjacent to Malta.
Times of Malta reported that three women and their five children, reported missing in Germany, were found living in an apartment with another German married couple in Gozo.
The couple said they were providing shelter for "battered women".
The German police and the Maltese national social welfare agency are involved, according to the news reports.
The Malta police could not provide further details.