A 21-year-old woman was being held on suspicion of murder today after police found a baby and a toddler reportedly stabbed to death.

The bodies of the three-month-old baby boy and a boy of three were discovered at a property in the Cheetham Hill area of Manchester yesterday evening.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: “A 21-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is currently in police custody for questioning.

“An investigation is currently under way into the circumstances surrounding (the children’s) deaths.”

The Manchester Evening News reported that the children received fatal stab wounds to the chest, but a spokesman for the force said he was “unable to confirm or deny the reports”.

Police said that they alerted to the property in Kilmington Drive at 5.45pm after reports of “concern for welfare” were made.

The house was cordoned off this morning with several police officers standing outside. Forensic experts are carrying out a detailed examination of the house.

Neighbours spoke of their distress at what had taken place. One woman, who lives on the street, said: “It’s heart-breaking, just tragic - hard to believe.”

A mother living in nearby Ermington Drive said: “It’s shocking. People think Cheetham Hill is a bad estate and bad area anyway, but for that to happen to children, that’s the the worst thing.”

Another said the woman who was arrested had been living at the property for only around six months.

Cheetham Hill, which lies around two miles north of Manchester city centre, was an overspill for the notorious Moss Side area during the 1980s and 1990s. It is undergoing regeneration and has a large proportion of council housing.

In June, Sasikala Navaneethan, 35, was detained under the Mental Health Act after her five-year-old son and four-year-old daughter were found stabbed to death. The Sri Lankan-born mother was said to have been struggling with the emotional and financial pressures of bringing up a family.

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