Imagine being chained to the wall of a dirty room that wasn’t your own, being mentally tormented by a man who is widely considered to be a positive influence in the community. Imagine being impregnated by your captor, then giving birth in a kiddie-pool in the basement of the house that has become your worst nightmare. Three young women were held captive by Ariel Castro, a local school bus driver and band bassist, for over ten years.1
Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry, and Georgina DeJesus were the three strong and inspiring young women that survived this nightmare. In Cleveland, Ohio, Ariel Castro captured his first victim, Michelle Knight, as she was walking home from her cousin’s home in 2002. He held her in his basement to torment and rape her, which allowed him to develop power over her. Castro then moved her upstairs in his home, where the abuses continued. Some of the early abuse that Knight endured ended in pregnancies, but Castro would beat her until she miscarried.2
The second victim, Amanda Berry, was last seen by her co-workers at Burger King the day before her seventeenth birthday in 2003. On her way home from work, she accepted a ride home from community member, Ariel Castro. However, the ultimate destination was not what she had expected. Within the time Castro held Berry captive, he impregnated her. She gave birth to her daughter, Jocelyn, in the basement of Castro’s home in a kiddie-pool with the assistance of Knight. Castro had threatened Michelle Knight’s life, insisting that if the baby didn’t survive, neither would she. So when Berry’s daughter wasn’t breathing at birth, Knight successfully performed CPR on the infant, saving her life.3
Georgina DeJesus was a friend of Castro’s daughter, a fact he used to lure her into his car. In 2004, DeJesus was walking home from school when Castro approached her and offered her a ride home. The fourteen-year-old girl recognized him and accepted the offer, little did she know that she wouldn’t be returning to her home for another nine years. The three women only had each other from 2002 until they were rescued in 2013.4
Each woman’s nightmare began similarly as Castro had a system of abuse that he used to overpower them. This system made them fear him so much that they wouldn’t fight back or attempt to escape. One of the tactics Castro used to prevent his victim’s from escaping was that he intentionally left their doors unlocked, and then he patiently waited by the front door for them. When Castro discovered that one of them trying to escape, he violently beat them, using it as an example to the other captives as to what would happen if they chose to flee.5
Castro successfully hid his monstrosities from the community he lived in for the eleven years he held the women captive. His friends and family noticed that he didn’t have people over often, but that wasn’t abnormal for Castro. After his wife divorced him, Castro spent most of his time outside of his home, attending local concerts with bands as the bassist, and even attending searches and vigils for the women he held captive in his own home. The community had no reason to suspect that he had anything to do with the women’s disappearances. Roughly two weeks before the rescue of the women, Castro had an individual over because he was interested in purchasing their bass guitar. The man said he had no idea that there was anyone in the home other than Castro, hearing only a sound like a dog upstairs.6
The community will never forget the day Castro made a simple mistake. On May 6, 2013, Castro left a door unlocked. The women upstairs, contemplating whether it was another one of Castro’s wicked tricks or an honest mistake, remained in their rooms. Eventually, however, Amanda Berry built up the courage to try to escape. When she discovered that it was a mistake on Castro’s end, she and her daughter headed for the door. It was the middle of the day when Berry had opened the front door and started yelling for help, her daughter at her side. Castro’s neighbors noticed the strange scene and immediately came to Berry’s aid.7
The screen door was locked from the outside so the neighbor’s kicked in a corner to free Berry and her daughter, Jocelyn. Berry then immediately called the police to get the other girls rescued from their real life nightmare. Upon the girls’ escape, the neighborhood was stunned. Throughout those eleven years, none of Castro’s surrounding neighbors had any indication or idea that three women were being held captive just a few yards away.8
Nobody knew what to think. The community felt like they had failed these three women. Ultimately, Ariel Castro plead guilty to 937 counts of kidnapping, rape, and aggravated assault. He was sentenced to life plus 1,000 years in prison without the possibility of parole. After a month in prison Castro hung himself with his bed sheets in his cell. While kidnapping is a horrific crime, it is not uncommon in the United States. In 1999, it was estimated that 11.4 children per 1,000 in the United States are reported missing. So, how well do you know your neighbors?9
- Phillip J. Resnick M.D. and George W. Schmedlen Ph.D., “Competency Report,” Court Psychiatric Clinic, (2013); 2-3. ↵
- Biography.com Editors, “Ariel Castro Biography”, The Biography.com Website, (2014) https://www.biography.com/people/ariel-castro-21311121. ↵
- Corky Siemaszko, “Michelle Knight still recovering five years after being freed from Ariel Castro,” ABC News, (2018), https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/michelle-knight-still-recovering-5-years-after-being-freed-ariel-n870906. ↵
- Melanie Eversley and Doug Stranglin, “Autopsy: Ariel Castro hanged himself in prison cell,” USA Today, (2013), https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/04/ariel-castro-hung-prison/2761177/. ↵
- Biography.com Editors, “Ariel Castro Biography”, The Biography.com Website, (2014) https://www.biography.com/people/ariel-castro-21311121. ↵
- Corky Siemaszko, “Michelle Knight still recovering five years after being freed from Ariel Castro,” ABC News, (2018), https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/michelle-knight-still-recovering-5-years-after-being-freed-ariel-n870906. ↵
- Melanie Eversley and Doug Stranglin, “Autopsy: Ariel Castro hanged himself in prison cell,” USA Today, (2013), https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/04/ariel-castro-hung-prison/2761177/. ↵
- Corky Siemaszko, “Michelle Knight still recovering five years after being freed from Ariel Castro,” ABC News, (2018), https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/michelle-knight-still-recovering-5-years-after-being-freed-ariel-n870906. ↵
- Andrea Sedlak, David Finkelhor, Heather Hammer, and Dana Schultz, “National Estimates of Missing Children: An Overview,” NISMART, (2002): 5-10. ↵
124 comments
Sharriah Martinez
It is so sad to think that a person so loved and known by the community is capable of being such a monster. This is truly sickening, the saying” you don’t know what goes on behind closed doors” is true. This neighborhood house was hiding three girls and children, I cant imagine the torment these women went through. Birthing your kidnappers child. The psychological and emotional pain these women will forever have to endure is heartbreaking. This was a wonderful read thank you for your article.
Leeza Cordova
This article really made me think about the people who I know and live by and what secrets they hide. It also made me consider how sick and disturbed someone can be without anyone else knowing, and with them hiding all of it behind a smile. It is crazy to think that all of these women went missing and were kidnapped by someone they knew and trusted, and raises the question about how well we know those close to us and their motives in our lives.
Samantha Ruvalcaba
I remember watching a lifetime movie about these events a few years ago. You did a wonderful job putting writing about them. Although it’s unsettling to write about, it’s important to revisit stories like these to spread awareness. We live in a society where people miss the opportunities to help others because they’re wrapped up in their own world. “It’s none of my business,” we say. If the roles were reversed though, we would want someone to make it their business.
Chelsea Alvarez
Stories like this are so intriguing and also very real. How can an individual do this for so long and go unnoticed? It just goes to show that we really don’t know people for who they truly are. The fact that he lured these young girls so easily and tortured them enough for them to grow scared of him. I’m so happy that he was finally caught, but I can’t even begin to imagine the trauma these women have to heal from because of him.
Krystal Rodriguez
This story is extremely saddening. Not knowing what your neighbors are truly like is such a mystery. It’s baffling how someone can have 3 girls kidnapped in his house and no one suspected a thing. This man took advantage of these girl’s innocence and kidnapped them. I can’t imagine getting a ride from my friends parents and not returning home for 10 years.
Mariah Cavanaugh
I am obsessed with true crime and thoroughly enjoyed your article. I think that knowledge is power and the more information we are armed with, the better we can protect ourselves. At least, that is what I tell myself when I consume vast amounts of true crime. You did a great job of condensing the story and giving an informative overview.
Nadia Carrasco
Reading this article was very sad but eye opening. It is crazy to think that anybody could not be who they portray, even the people closest to you. I do not understand how Castro did some of the things he did not those girls having a kid around the same age as them. Really goes to show how messed up the guy was. This article did a great job about making the case clear while keeping the reader on the edge.
Nathalie Figueroa Soto
The events that took place in this article were absolutely chilling to read about. It becomes even more haunting when you realize that what happened to Amanda Berry, Michelle Knight, and Georgina DeJesus could realistically happen to anybody. It’s scary to think that these women weren’t discovered for over 10 years. It’s also shocking that the man who had captured them had even participated in attempts made to find them in order to look innocent. Reading this article makes me wonder what horrors could be occurring right in my own neighborhood without me or the proper authorities knowing.
Emily Velazquez
Honestly, I hate learning about real life stories like this, but then there is this other side of me that is grateful people share these with the world because it makes me be more aware of my surroundings no matter where I am at. It is so unfortunate that people go to such extreme measures to kidnap and harm people. The fact that Castro attended search parties for the three women and hid it so well to where no one even suspected a thing is truly haunting.
Abigail Lopez
I’ve always known that you never truly know what’s going on behind closed doors, but this is beyond shocking. The fact that Castro could attend vigils and searches for the women knowing exactly where they were at and not giving the slightest hint that he was holding them captive. Even though the women were rescued and are no longer suffering at the hands of a community member they once trusted, it is still heartbreaking to know that they’ve gone through so much during the 11 years they were held hostage and more than likely face PTSD.