Mother kept alleged stepson in captivity for 20 years before lit fire to escape

A Connecticut woman was arrested this week after a man was identified as her stepson told the police that he started a house fire at their shared home to escape decades of her alleged abuse.

Kimberly Sullivan, 56, is accused of keeping his 32-year-old stepson captivity since he was 11 years old, said Waterbury Police Department in a statement. She was taken in police repository on Wednesday, March 12.

“The suffering that this victim has endured for over 20 years is both heartbreaking and unthinkable. This case required relentless investigation efforts, and I praise the commitment to our officers and Waterbury State Law Office, ”said Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo.

“Their unmatched commitment ensured that justice be served, and the perpetrator is held entirely responsible for these terrible crimes,” Spagnolo continued.

After the Waterbury Fire Department helped to put out the flames in Sullivan’s home on February 17, the 32-year-old told “the first response had intentionally put the fire in his upstairs room, stating,” I wanted my freedom, “said police. The alleged victim was not publicly identified.

“Facts in this case, quite sincere, facts are something from a horror movie. It is without exaggeration,” said the supervisory’s lawyer Don Therkildsen, according to CT post.

Sullivan was accused of abuse in the first degree, kidnapping in the second degree, illegal restraint in the first degree, cruelty to persons and reckless danger in the first degree.

Following the “worrying” charges from his stepson, the authorities initiated an investigation that found that “the victim had been held in captivity for over 20 years, which exhausted long -term abuse, starvation, serious neglect and inhuman treatment,” said Waterbury Police Department in its statement.

According to police, the 32-year-old was discovered “in a severely abandoned state and had not received medical or dental care” when he lived with his stepmother.

The situation got worse when the stepson’s father died last year, the victim told the police, according to a commander for Sullivan’s arrest.

Sullivan appeared in the court for arranging on Wednesday.

“He lit a fire with a little hand cleaner, some paper from a printer, and he lit it the fire while he was locked in that room from the outside. He lit that fire very well to know that he could die, but he had been locked up in the room for 20 years, and for 20 years he had tried to get out of that room, ”said prosecutor during arranging, WFSB-TV 3 reported.

With reference to an order, the outlet reported that the 32-year-old weighed about £ 68 and had not left home since he was 14 or 15 years old.

He was also removed from school when he was in fourth grade.

Sullivan’s lawyer, Ioannis A. Kaloidis, denied something wrong on behalf of his client and called the allegations “Outlandish.”

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“She was blown away when she heard these accusations,” the lawyer told reporters. “She is adamant that they are not true. This did not happen and we look forward to being able to confirm her and show that she has not done anything wrong. ”

Kaloidis added, “These accusations seemed to be based on the words of an individual and an individual alone.”

Sullivan’s bond was set at $ 300,000, and she will be placed in the custody of the Connecticut Department of Corrections, police say.

If you suspect children, call Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline on 1-800-4-Per or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are free of charge and confidential. The threat line is available around the clock in more than 170 languages.