Five of the eight young men arrested on charges of raping minors in dawn raids on Tuesday are cousins, the Telegraaf said on Wednesday.

Relatives told the paper that they cannot believe the men, aged 18 to 26, are guilty of grooming, possibly drugging and raping three girls aged 15 and 16 in a ‘chill room’ at a car sales room in Den Bosch.

Despite the family’s protestations, police have described the case as a sex case of considerable magnitude and said they suspect other girls are also involved. The case came to light when the three girls all made separate reports.

Police also say the suspects had circulated photographs of the girls, some of which can be considered child pornography, on social media.

‘If the boys are guilty, then they should pay,’ one of the boy’s mothers said, outside the garage property. But her son, 18, could not have done something like this, the woman told the Telegraaf.

Forensic experts first examined the room where the rapes are said to have happened in April, taking away laughing gas balloons and a piece of carpet, the woman said.

‘They told us at the time “don’t worry, just get on with your day to day lives”,’ she told the paper.

The eight men remain in custody and only have contact with their lawyers.