Cleveland missing women: Ariel Castro appears in court

On Monday three women, Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michele Knight, emerged from Ariel Castro’s home after Ms Berry managed to call for help.

Mr Castro, 52, and his two brothers, Pedro and O’Neal, were arrested following the release of the women. Police have not brought charges against the two brothers, after the three women gave no indication in statements to the police that they had been involved.

Ariel appeared in court charged with counts of kidnapping – covering the three women and the child born to one of them – and counts of rape. His bail was set at $8m.

‘Ropes and chains’

The horrors alleged to have been inflicted on the women by Castro are now beginning to come to light, police say, who have taken lengthy statements from Mr Castro and the women.

Police say the women were apparently bound by ropes and chains at times, and kept in different rooms. Cleveland’s deputy police chief Ed Tomba said the women could only recall being outside the house twice in the entire time of their captivity.

“We were told they left the house and went into the garage in disguise,” he said.

Also in the house was a six-year-old child belonging to one of the women. A paternity test was done on Castro to establish whether or not he had fathered the child.

Escape

While Castro was being charged, officers were also searching a vacant house. Officials would only say their search was an attempt to get evidence in the case against Castro, but they refused to say what they found or what led them there.

The women escaped captivity on Monday when Ms Berry managed to call for help, alerting a neighbour, who then helped her escape the house.

She then called 911 and, when police arrived, they found the two other women at the house.

The women, in their 20s and 30s, had all gone missing between 2002 and 2004 when they were teenagers.