US kidnap suspect faces 329 charges

CLEVELAND, USA – One of the 3 suspects in a decade-long kidnapping case in Ohio has been indicted on 329 charges by a US grand jury on Friday, June 7.

Among charges of rape and kidnapping, Ariel Castro will also be facing one count of aggravated murder for allegedly causing the unlawful termination of the pregnancy of one of the victims.

In a 142-page indictment, prosecutors have alleged that the woman miscarried due to Castro’s beatings.

They said that the 3 women, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight and Amanda Berry, were restrained and never allowed to leave Castro’s home. The three also suffered repeated beatings and were sexually abused during their captivity.

Castro, 52, and two of his brothers—Pedro, 54, and Onil, 50— were arrested last month in their two-story home for kidnapping the women for over a decade.

They also found a young daughter that one of the women gave birth to during her captivity. 

Authorities said DNA tests confirm Ariel Castro as the father of the girl.

The victims were abducted separately in 2002, 2003, and 2004. They were rescued after one of the women managed to get the attention of a neighbor who kicked in the door to his house and alerted authorities.

The prosecutors said they may seek the death penalty against Castro. – Rappler.com