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Apoorva Jujjavarapu
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Ariel Castro's Cleveland house from where Amanda Berry and two other women were rescued (Photo Credit: Bill Pugliano | Getty Images)
Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of assault. Reader discretion is advised.
The Ariel Castro kidnappings include the abductions of Amanda Berry, Michelle Knight, who now identifies as Lily Rose Lee, and Gina DeJesus. According to People Magazine, they were held hostage by Castro in his Cleveland home for 10, 11, and 9 years, respectively. Berry, Knight, and DeJesus were chained and locked inside his Cleveland house and were reportedly deprived of food and basic hygiene. They were also sexually assaulted, which resulted in Amanda Berry giving birth to her daughter Jocelyn in 2006.
On May 6, 2013, after a decade of being held by Castro, the women made a successful escape to freedom. When Castro wasn’t around, Amanda Berry reportedly saw the bedroom door unlocked for the first time in ten years. She also noticed that the front door downstairs was open but wired with an alarm. Berry saw that the storm door was padlocked shut but was able to squeeze out an arm, ABC News reported.
Amanda Berry then began waving from the door and screaming for help. She was first seen by a neighbor who didn’t intervene, which made her believe that Castro would be back and kill her after knowing her calls for help. Then, another neighbor named Charles Ramsey noticed her. Berry managed to get his help to kick the door open and get Jocelyn and herself out. Once they were out of the house, Berry ran across the street and called 911.
Police then arrived at Castro’s Cleveland residence. The three women were rescued, and their families were contacted. Amanda Berry’s mother reportedly suffered a heart attack and died before she could meet Amanda. However, her sister was there to welcome her home.
How did Ariel Castro kidnap Amanda Berry?
Ariel Castro kidnapped all three of his victims by offering them a ride. He reportedly convinced them that they were acquainted with one of his daughters. Amanda Berry was 16 when she was offered a ride by Ariel Castro as she walked home from work on April 21, 2003. Berry knew one of his daughters and accepted the ride. She informed her sister that she took a ride from Castro, but the latter then kidnapped her.
A week later, an unknown male called Berry’s mother from her cell phone and informed her that her daughter was with him and would be coming home in a few days, per People Magazine. However, no one heard from Berry for the following ten years.
By the time he kidnapped Berry, Castro was already holding Michelle Knight, a then-21-year-old mother whom he kidnapped on August 22, 2002. Knight was getting late for an appointment with a social worker when Castro offered her a ride. He told her about one of his daughters, whom Knight knew, and she accepted the ride that eventually led to her abduction.
Gina DeJesus was also offered a ride by Ariel Castro when she was on her way home from school on April 4, 2004, nearly a year after Amanda Berry was kidnapped. She was only 14 at the time, and she also knew one of his daughters, Arlene. The latter was one of the last people to see DeJesus before she disappeared for nearly nine years.
Following his arrest, Ariel Castro pleaded guilty to 937 counts of kidnapping, rape, and aggravated murder. He was sentenced to life plus 1000 years in prison on August 1, 2013, reported ABC News. He was 53 at the time.
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