Three children were found dead in a house in the New Zealand port city of Timaru.
The alleged perpetrator is said to be the 40-year-old mother, who, according to the authorities, was initially taken to a hospital and is due to appear in court on Saturday.
Local media quoted the police in the city on the South Island on Friday as being accused of murder.
The victims are three girls: twins at the age of two and their six-year-old sister, wrote the news portal "Stuff".
According to police in the Canterbury area, to which Timaru belongs, the family is from South Africa and had recently arrived in New Zealand.
Local police chief John Price said, according to Radio New Zealand, the family has friends in the Pacific state, but no relatives.
The murder allegedly took place in a house that houses staff from the local hospital.
The parents of the dead children are both doctors, reported the news portal "Stuff".
According to the information, the father is said to have found his daughters lifeless and alerted the authorities.
What exactly happened was initially unclear.