Police in Connecticut have released over 100 photographs offering a glimpse inside the Waterbury home where a 32-year-old man claims he was held captive for over two decades.
The man, who remains unidentified, told authorities he set a fire on February 17th in a desperate bid for freedom. Rescuers found him emaciated, weighing a mere 69 pounds (31 kilograms).
The images show a cluttered house with fire damage concentrated on the second floor – the area where the man alleges he was confined.
Several photos focus on a door frame fitted with a metal slide lock, corroborating police descriptions of a lock located on the outside of the man's room. He told investigators he was locked inside this small room for most of each day, receiving only meagre amounts of food and water since he was approximately 11 years old. He is currently recovering at an undisclosed location under medical supervision.
Waterbury police said Tuesday that they could not provide information on what each photo shows.
One photo of a second-story room heavily damaged by fire shows burned walls and carpet with numerous items on the floor, including photos, boxes, bags, what appears to be a blanket and a baseball-like pennant with hearts that says “Kim.”
The man's stepmother, Kimberly Sullivan, is charged with kidnapping, felony assault, cruelty to persons and other crimes. She and her lawyer have denied that she kept the man locked in a room and she has pleaded not guilty. Sullivan told police that the man was free to move about the house as he pleased, according to an arrest warrant. The man's father died last year.
Sullivan's attorney, Ioannis Kaloidis, said in a statement to local media Tuesday that the release of the photos was “shocking, offensive and quite frankly, ethically questionable. It only serves to solidify public opinion against Ms. Sullivan.”
The man said he was locked in a room measuring about 8 feet by 9 feet (2.4 meters by 2.7 meters) and was only let out briefly in the morning to do chores. He said he was given up to two sandwiches and two small bottles of water a day and was constantly hungry.
The man told police he was removed from the Waterbury school system in the fourth grade for homeschooling in 2004 after school officials reported concerns about his well-being to the state Department of Children and Families. DCF officials visited the home at the time, but it's not clear if any action was taken. DCF officials recently said they found some records involving the man and are reviewing them, but have not released details.
State and local authorities have been looking into how this could have happened, and some are calling for stricter oversight of homeschooling.
Along with the photos, Waterbury police also released reports on their visits to the home in 2005. The reports are similar to police officials' recent statements that there were no causes for concern at the home. A police report said Sullivan's stepson “appeared to be healthy and happy" and the home appeared “normal and lived in.”
Police visited the home at the time for a welfare check after children who attended school with him before he was pulled out expressed concern about him and after the family made a harassment complaint against school officials for reporting them to state child welfare officials.
The man told police that Sullivan threatened longer lockdowns and more restrictions to his food if he ever told anyone about his treatment.
A search warrant released Monday night said the man told police that he set the fire using a lighter, hand sanitizer and paper in an effort to kill himself because he wanted freedom from the captivity.
