FOXBORO - A Washington, D.C., man said today he locked his two young daughters in the trunk of his car in front of a Foxboro nursing home over the weekend at their request.

Michael F. Fekete's two girls could have gotten out of the trunk themselves by pressing a "glow-in-the-dark release button," Fekete's court-appointed attorney told Wrentham District Court Judge Warren Powers.

They were placed in the trunk after expressing "curiosity" about what it would be like inside, he said.

Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Rowe said a witness told police he saw the children, ages 9 and 11, placed in the trunk for about five minutes Sunday afternoon in 93-degree heat in front of the Doolittle Home on Bird Street.

Fekete, 48, then placed the girls in the back seat of the car, Rowe said. Fekete and his family were visiting his mother, Irene, who lives at the nursing home.

The state Department of Social Services is investigating the incident, Rowe said.

Police charged Fekete, a married father of three, with two counts each of assault and reckless endangerment of a child.

Powers ordered Fekete released on personal recognizance following his arraignment in Wrentham District Court Monday morning.

Powers set two conditions of Fekete's release: he must not abuse children and he must follow any conditions set by the social services office in Washington, D.C.

Fekete's wife, Annette, flew up from their home to care for their children.