Mother ‘threw sons from 15th-floor balcony’

Galina Ryabkova, 30, was filmed on CCTV looking emotionless as she was detained moments after the horrific incident.

Stunned neighbours in her block of flats were alerted when they heard the thump of the children’s bodies hitting the ground.

Ryabkova tempted her kids up to the 15th floor on Sunday afternoon by promising them that they would throw paper planes from there, state media reported.

She is then said to have tossed her sons, aged four and seven, from the apartment building in Moscow, Russia, where she lived with her husband.

The tragic deaths have shocked the country and raised questions over whether social services are doing enough to protect children from potentially dangerous parents.

Ryabkova allegedly later told witnesses she was “fed up with children” and “decided to get rid of them”.

Russia's Investigative Committee said the woman had been detained after the incident and would be subjected to a psychiatric examination.

Her husband, named as Sergei, is reportedly in a state of shock after barricading himself inside his home and refusing to answer any questions

Neighbour Tatiana Gumanyova said: “I was standing near the window and heard a loud smack.

“I did not pay attention, and thought that the child just stumbled and fell. But then I heard one more smack.”

Another resident said: “My wife woke me up and said that there were children falling out.

“We ran out and saw two children lying on the ground in front of the main door. Just at that time their mother was leaving the building.

“We asked her if these were her children and she replied, emotionlessly, ’Yes, I threw them away.’”

Meanwhile, fellow witness Lidia Kochergina told state TV: "I saw one of the boys — he was lying on his back in green shorts and he had something green in his hands, some kind of toy.”

Ryabkova’s children had not been attending kindergarten and were being home-educated.

The mother was said to be calm before police arrived although she gave some resistance when they arrested her.

She later told investigators that her children were now “angels in heaven”, local media reported.