A mum in Pennsylvania and her partner have been arrested after the remains of her two young daughters aged 4 and 6 were found buried in her back garden.

The incident took place in Williamsport, which is a city in the US state of Pennsylvania and the Old Lycoming Township Police Department issued a statement saying that Nicole Elizabeth Snyder, 6, died or was killed before she was buried “in the back yard of the residence at 653 Livermore Road, Williamsport” in 2016.

The police also said that Jasmine Jean Snyder, 4, “died/was killed and subsequently buried in 2017” in the same location.

The mum has been named as Marie Sue Snyder, while her partner has been named as Echo Lane Butler, 26, who is said to have admitted that he knew about the children’s deaths, according to local media reports.

The police said that the two children’s remains were being transferred to the city of Erie, in Pennsylvania, “for further analysis by a Forensic Anthropologist”.

The police said that the investigation was ongoing, adding that they were treating the case as homicide and that they were handling the investigation along with help from the Lycoming County District Attorney’s Office.

They added that other law enforcement agencies had helped them locate and exhume the children’s remains, “including the FBI and State Police”, which they thanked.