Thread: 3 women missing in Ohio found after a decade; 3 men arrested

3 women missing in Ohio found after a decade; 3 men arrested
Cheryl K. Chumley
Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Police have arrested three brothers tied to the case of three Ohio women who went missing for 10 years, but resurfaced Monday.

The three women were discovered alive in a housing community outside Cleveland, just down the road from where they disappeared about a decade ago, The Associated Press reported.

One of the woman placed a panicked call to 911 and said she had been abducted, but was “free now,” AP reported.

Investigators say one of the brothers they arrested, a 52-year-old, lived at this same home, AP reported. The other two brothers, aged 50 and 54, lived elsewhere. Police said one of the suspects was Hispanic, but withheld most other information, including their names, pending a press conference scheduled for Tuesday. They did tell the AP that the women were likely tied up in the house for most of the time they were missing.

The three women who were found alive were Amanda Berry, Georginia “Gina” DeJesus and Michelle Knight, AP reported. Police said a 6-year-old was found in the house, too, but declined to release additional details.
Fox News reported the women knew their captors.

“Our family never gave up hope,” said Shelia Figaro, the cousin of one of the women who went missing, during a “Fox & Friends” appearance on Tuesday morning.

washingtontimes.com

Published on 6 May 2013
Three women who went missing separately about a decade ago have been found alive in Cleveland. Three men are now under arrest. (May 7)
youtube.com

Was watching that on CNN about 7am.... brilliant news, fair made my day.

I bet there's a book and a movie already being written.

Fox & Friends, hmm. Did they see a link to Islam?

the remix

Hero neighbour video|Charles Ramsey goes viral, Cleveland

Nice tune, hope me gets some lolly.

Cleveland kidnap accused Castro to plead innocent - lawyers


Ariel Castro made his first court appearance in Cleveland on 9 May

Ohio abductions

• Mystery of 'kidnap den'
• Profile: Ariel Castro
• Missing White Woman syndrome
• Profiles of women

The US man accused of imprisoning three women for a decade in his house in Ohio will plead not guilty to all charges, his lawyers say.

Ariel Castro, aged 52, is charged with four counts of kidnapping and three counts of rape.

The women were abducted at different times and held in Mr Castro's house in Cleveland. One of them escaped earlier this month and raised the alarm.

"He's not a monster and he shouldn't be demonised," said lawyer Jaye Schlachet.
Speaking to the AFP news agency, he added that details of Mr Castro's innocence "will be disclosed as the case progresses".

Craig Weintraub, another defence lawyer, told WKYC-TV that his client "loves dearly'' the child he fathered with 27-year-old Amanda Berry - one of the three alleged kidnap victims.

The other women freed from Mr Castro's house were Gina DeJesus, 23, and Michelle Knight, 32.


Psychiatrists say Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight and Amanda Berry need to be protected from the media


The defence lawyers said they had spent four hours speaking to Mr Castro in prison.
Prosecutors in Ohio have said they also plan to seek aggravated murder charges that could carry the death penalty.

The charges relate to alleged forced miscarriages suffered by one victim.

The prosecutors are still preparing their case against Mr Castro and there has yet to be an arraignment hearing.


'Sexual predator'

Mr Castro made his first court appearance in Cleveland on 9 May without entering a plea.

County prosecutor Brian Murphy told that hearing: "The charges against Mr Castro are based on premeditated, deliberate, depraved decisions to snatch three young ladies from Cleveland West Side streets to be used in whatever self-gratifying, self-serving way he saw fit."

He is charged with four counts of kidnapping, covering the three initial abduction victims and Jocelyn, Ms Berry's six-year-old daughter, who was apparently conceived and born in captivity.

The former school bus driver also faces three counts of rape, one against each woman.

Bail was set at $8m (£5.1m), meaning in effect that he has remained in custody ever since. He is currently on suicide watch and is being kept in isolation.

According to CBS News, Mr Castro confessed to his crimes in a long, hand-written letter found in the house, which investigators believe may have been intended as a suicide note.

In the 2004-dated letter he said he had been raped as a child by his uncle and was also abused by his parents, a law enforcement source told the US network.

Mr Castro reportedly called himself a "sexual predator", but he also asked to donate all his money to his victims after his death.

His two brothers, Pedro and Onil, also appeared in court on unrelated charges. They had been arrested, but police found no evidence linking them to the crime.

Pedro Castro was fined $100 for public drinking, while two minor counts against Onil Castro were dropped.

Ms Berry, whose disappearance in 2003 the day before her 17th birthday was widely publicised in the local media, escaped from Mr Castro's house by kicking the door and screaming for help while her alleged captor was out. A neighbour helped her to escape.

The other women were freed soon afterwards. They were all abducted after accepting rides from Mr Castro, according to a police report leaked to the media.

Cleveland kidnaps: Ariel Castro faces 329 charges




Ariel Castro faces a total of 329 charges


A man accused of imprisoning three women for about a decade in his home in Cleveland, Ohio, has been indicted by a grand jury for rape and kidnapping.

Ariel Castro faces 329 charges, with 139 counts of rape, 177 of kidnapping, seven of gross sexual imposition, three of assault, and owning criminal tools.

The 52-year-old also faces two counts of aggravated murder for terminating one of the women's pregnancies.

The women were Michelle Knight, 32, Amanda Berry, 27, and Gina DeJesus, 23.

Last month, the suspect was charged with three counts of rape and four of kidnapping, which includes a six-year-old girl he fathered with Ms Berry.

'Off suicide watch'

Mr Castro is due to be formally arraigned on the new charges next week, when a trial judge will also be appointed to his case, prosecutors said.

Left to right: Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight (WOIO / CBS image) and Amanda Berry

He will plead not guilty to any indictment, his legal team has said.

The accused is being held on $8m (£5m) bail. Prison officials said this week he had been taken off suicide watch.

"Today's indictments represent a first major step in the criminal justice process," Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty said in a statement.

"Our investigation continues, and we will present our findings to the grand jury."

After the indictment is complete, a committee would consider whether to press for the death penalty in this case, the prosecutor's statement said.

Ms Berry, who disappeared in 2003 the day before her 17th birthday, escaped from Mr Castro's house on 6 May with the help of a neighbour.

The other women were then freed from the house. They were all reportedly abducted after accepting car rides from Mr Castro.

After her release, Ms Berry told the authorities she was forced to give birth in a plastic pool in his house, as it was easier to clean up.




Residents of Lorain Avenue, where the three girls went missing, discuss the impact of the case


Ms Knight said her five pregnancies ended after her captor starved her for at least two weeks and "repeatedly punched her in the stomach until she miscarried", according to the authorities.

She also said she was forced to help Ms Berry with the delivery of her daughter and was threatened with death if the infant did not survive. The baby stopped breathing and Ms Knight used mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to save it, authorities said.

Ms Knight vanished in 2002 when she was 20. Ms DeJesus was 14 when she went missing in April 2004.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/world/us-canada-228239

Ariel Castro to serve life in prison under plea deal



Ariel Castro, shown last week, told the judge on Friday his sexual problems had taken a toll on his mind


The Ohio man accused of raping and holding three women captive in his home for about a decade has agreed to a plea deal that will see him imprisoned for life without the possibility of parole.

Ariel Castro, 53, was arrested in May after one of the women escaped.

He abducted Michelle Knight, 32, Amanda Berry, 27, and Gina DeJesus, 23, from Cleveland streets between 2002-04.

Castro was charged with murder for beating and starving one of the women, who was pregnant, until she miscarried.

In a courtroom in Cleveland, Ohio, Judge Michael Russo repeatedly warned Castro he would never be let out of prison.

"Is that clear?" he asked Castro, who sat clad in an orange jail jumpsuit, his hands cuffed in front of him.

"I do understand that, your honour," Castro, an unemployed school bus driver, replied. "I knew I was pretty much going to get the book thrown at me."


No death penalty




The three women were all taken from the same street between 2002-04

Under the terms of the plea deal Castro will receive an additional prison sentence of 1,000 years and his property and other assets will be forfeited. He will also be classified as a sex offender.

The agreement protects him from further charges and from the death penalty.

The judge said there were plans to demolish the house where the women were held.

At the hearing, Castro told the judge he was abused as a child and said, "My addiction to pornography and my sexual problem has really taken a toll on my mind."

Castro was charged with 977 counts including two of aggravated murder for the "unlawful termination" of one of the women's pregnancies, as well as multiple counts of kidnapping and rape.

Other charges included gross sexual imposition, felonious assault and endangering children.

The three women were abducted after accepting car rides from Castro, police said. Neighbours said they did not think anyone had been living in the house where the women were imprisoned.

They were rescued from the house after Ms Berry kicked open a door while Castro was out of the house and was aided by a neighbour who heard her struggling and screaming.
When officials arrived they freed Ms Knight and Ms DeJesus, as well as Ms Berry's six-year-old daughter, who was fathered by Mr Castro.


Brutal treatment



The house where the three women were held will probably be demolished, the judge said


Ms Knight disappeared in 2002 when she was 20 years old. The following year Ms Berry vanished the day before her 17th birthday, and Ms DeJesus went missing in 2004 at the age of 14.

While in captivity, one of the women became pregnant many times and suffered multiple miscarriages.

One woman also said that she was forced to help Ms Berry deliver her baby and was threatened with death if the baby did not survive.

Castro was accused of chaining the women to a pole in a basement, to a bedroom heater or holding them inside a van.

Prosecutors also said Castro garrotted one of the women with a vacuum cord after catching her trying to escape.

Months after their release, the three women appeared in a video thanking the public for their support. Otherwise, they have requested privacy and a speedy resolution to the case against Castro.

Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro found hanged in cell
4 September 2013
Ariel Castro, who kept women captive at his home in Cleveland, Ohio, has died after being found hanging in his cell.

Prison officials said he died in hospital late on Tuesday, after prison medical staff failed to revive him.

A spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, JoEllen Smith, said: "He was housed in protective custody which means he was in a cell by himself and rounds are required every 30 minutes at staggered intervals.

"Upon finding inmate Castro, prison medical staff began performing life saving measures. Shortly after he was transported to [the prison medical facility] where he was pronounced dead at 10:52 pm."


"I'm not a monster, I'm a normal person, I am just sick, I have an addiction"

Good. May he rot in Hell.

Originally Posted by [B]Ariel Castro[/B]

"I'm not a monster, I'm a normal person, I am just sick, I have an addiction"

Held the women in Hell for 10 years , and couldn't stand captavity himself for 6 months .

Just saw were Ariel Castro was found dead in his prison cell. Although on a suicide watch, he apparently hanged himself. Good riddance.

This was the guy who kidnapped three young women and kept them chained up in his house for over 10 years. He fathered a child by one of the women.

I wish other criminals would have the "grace" to off themselves and save the US taxpayers 100's of thousands of dollars.

RickThai
___________

What fantastic news. Think of the $$$ saved.

The sad part is someone is probably going to lose their job over this (rightly so, I guess- if you're responsible for overseeing a 'suicide watch' and somebody croaks themselves, it's your ass)- good riddance to Castro, though.

Gotta love American law. The charges against the man went from 329 to 977, sentence life + 1,000 years. Impressive, but why not a million years? On top of it, an entry in the sex offenders catalogue. That'll teach him.

Originally Posted by FailSafe

The sad part is someone is probably going to lose their job over this (rightly so, I guess- if you're responsible for overseeing a 'suicide watch' and somebody croaks themselves, it's your ass)- good riddance to Castro, though.

I doubt it.

The guard made rounds on suicide watches. It's an interval.

CaAstro got lucky; got a break (no pun).

Seriously, a lot of people in the Correctional System (including a lot of citizens and me) think this is good):

it saves taxpayer money.

Originally Posted by Rainfall

Gotta love American law. The charges against the man went from 329 to 977, sentence life + 1,000 years. Impressive, but why not a million years? On top of it, an entry in the sex offenders catalogue. That'll teach him.

Agreed.

It's not the law, but the sentencing.

It's life. It should just be "life."

In my state it's "life w/out parole."

This "hundreds of years" stuff is foolish.

Originally Posted by RickThai

Just saw were Ariel Castro was found dead in his prison cell. Although on a suicide watch, he apparently hanged himself. Good riddance.

This was the guy who kidnapped three young women and kept them chained up in his house for over 10 years. He fathered a child by one of the women.

I wish other criminals would have the "grace" to off themselves and save the US taxpayers 100's of thousands of dollars.

RickThai
___________

I'll agree with you on this one.

Late Ohio captor Ariel Castro's prison logs falsified



Ariel Castro left no suicide note

Prison guards faked logs about their monitoring of Ohio kidnapper Ariel Castro in the hours before he killed himself last month, officials say.

An inquiry has found video footage that indicated two guards failed to make checks at least eight times on the day Castro was found hanged in his cell.

In August, Castro was sentenced to life imprisonment for abducting three women over a decade.

He raped them repeatedly while holding them in his Cleveland home.



The Ohio Department for Rehabilitation and Correction published its findings on Thursday.

The report said that prison guards had failed to check Castro at least eight times between 15:03 and 20:15 local time on 3 September. He was found hanged at 21:18.

The document said that "post log books were falsified" and that "there was no satisfactory verification process in place".

It was also revealed that Castro "was found in his cell with a Bible open to John Chapters 2 and 3".

"Additionally, he had pictures of his family out and arranged in a poster-board fashion. His pants and underwear were pulled down to his ankles."
The convict left no suicide note.

The report said Castro's intentions were unclear, however the facts had been "relayed to the Ohio State Highway Patrol for consideration of the possibility of auto-erotic asphyxiation".


BBC News - Late Ohio captor Ariel Castro's prison logs falsified

The poor child will have some skeletons in her closet.