The B.C. mother-of-four whose children were turned over to their sexually abusive father despite repeated pleas to the provincial government is speaking out publicly for the first time.

The woman, whom CTV News isn’t identifying in order to protect her kids, raised concerns about her ex-husband to social workers six years ago, and was led to believe the Ministry of Children and Family Development would be launching an investigation.

Instead, government staff questioned her mental health.

“If people knew what I have witnessed and experienced, they would never call the ministry,” she said. “[I] thought that the people working in these positions are people who could be trusted and have children’s best interest at heart.”

Her husband was arrested in 2009 for assaulting her and their five-year-old daughter. He then filed for divorce and sought sole guardianship of their kids.

According to a recent B.C. Supreme Court ruling, the mother warned the ministry that her three oldest children had all claimed their father sexually abused them. The kids also provided detailed accounts of the abuse.

But the ministry, believing her to be mentally ill, seized the children from her – before their custody trial could even get underway.

Then months later, social workers allowed the father to have unsupervised visits, in defiance of a court order, essentially allowing a man already accused of heinous crimes to sexually abuse his youngest child.

“Oh my gosh, that poor girl,” the mother told CTV News. “Who can do that to little kids? I honestly think she could’ve ended up dead if I didn’t rescue her.”

The kids’ mother eventually filed a lawsuit against the provincial government, and won last week. The court decision details a heartbreakingly long list of government failures, accusing social workers of recklessly disregarding their obligation to protect the children.

The government has already ordered an independent review of the case. The kids’ mother said she hopes to see meaningful change, to ensure something like this never happens to another family.

“It’s never too late to do the right thing,” she said.

With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Bhinder Sajan and files from The Canadian Press