Colleen Stan, who has lived through one of the most harrowing kidnapping cases in modern history, recently opened up about being held captive in a pitch-black box and being subjected to horrifying crimes.
On May 19, 1977, a 20-year-old Colleen set out on a trip to surprise her friend. However, the youngster from a “typical middle-class family” was later picked up by a married couple, who then took her home and forced her to live in a box while repeatedly abusing her.
Trigger warning: this article contains details of sexual abuse that may be distressing to some
Colleen Stan, only 20 years old in 1977, made a split-second decision to hitchhike, setting the stage for an unimaginable ordeal
“It was my friend Linda’s birthday. I decided I was going to go and surprise her,” she recalled in the documentary The Girl In The Box, according to The Sun.
“I went down and I tried to get my car to start that day but it wouldn’t start so I said, ‘That’s alright, I’ll hitchhike,'” said the now 68-year-old woman.
After a few rides from truck drivers, she eventually found a young couple pulling up next to her as she stood on the side of the road holding her thumb out.
Colleen, who saw their child in the backseat, thought it was safe to ride with the couple, identified as Cameron and Janice Hooker.
“I evaluated the situation and it seemed safe,” the kidnapping survivor said in the documentary.
Colleen accepted a ride from Cameron and Janice Hooker, believing it was safe because of their seemingly harmless family setup and their child in the backseat
The split-second decision led to dire consequences, as she later found herself handcuffed inside a box and being smuggled into a basement by the couple themselves.
“He took the handcuff off one of my wrists, and slaps on this leather cuff and hooked it into a hook on the ceiling,” she said.
The 20-year-old was then stripped off her clothes and suspended from a beam in the ceiling. The couple then had intercourse at her feet, marking the beginning of seven years of sexual abuse and torture.
Colleen was initially chained up to what Cameron referred to as “the rack” while he built another box for her.
“He kept me on the rack for a couple of weeks while he built another box. It was a box inside another box – a little bit bigger than a coffin,” she said.
Colleen was handcuffed, confined to a coffin-like box, and subjected to sexual abuse as part of her years-long torture
“Once an evening he’d come down, get me out of the box, let me use the bed pan, then he would usually have me sit on the rack, hand me something to eat… I had to do all that, naked. Then he would hang me up and torture me,” she continued.
Cameron later began raping her and having her do chores around the house.
“The first rape, he took me upstairs to their bedroom and he tied me up to their bed. I could feel them and hear them kissing over me and then all of a sudden he jumped on me and raped me,” she said.
In January 1978, Cameron forced her to sign a “slave contract” that threatened to hurt her and her loved ones if she didn’t obey his commands.
When the couple moved to a more rural location, they continued keeping her in a box under their bed and often had intercourse above her.
Cameron forced her to sign a “slave contract,” threatening her and her loved ones if she tried to escape
Meanwhile, her friends filed a missing person’s report with the police, and her family hired a private investigator to find her. But efforts to locate her were futile.
While held captive by the Hookers, Colleen’s condition grew increasingly worse as she was tortured both mentally and physically by Cameron.
“Once a day, I was given something to eat and then it was pretty exclusive for about three years – I was locked up in the box,” she said. “The more I was whimpering or crying, the more excited he got. If I didn’t react, it kind of got boring for him.”
“I was a mess. I got very skinny. Looked anorexic. My hair was falling out. After so many years had passed, there did come a point when I thought about taking my own life,” she went on to say.
In 1984, Janice revealed the truth about her husband after years of complicity and witnessing the abuse
It wasn’t until 1984 that Colleen finally gained her freedom. Janice had decided to come out with the truth and took Colleen back to her family. But at the time, Colleen didn’t go to the police because she was doubtful of who she could trust.
The truth eventually came out after Janice admitted the horrifying sequence of events to her pastor, who then informed the police around three months after Colleen’s escape.
After the police found the box, restraints, adult magazines, and even a picture of the “slave contract,” Cameron was arrested and later found guilty of several charges like kidnapping and sexual assault.
“I consider this defendant the most dangerous psychopath that I have ever dealt with… He will be a danger for as long as he is alive,” said the judge, who sentenced him to 104 years in prison.
Janice, who provided evidence against Cameron, was not prosecuted because it was believed she was also abused and afraid of her husband.
“I thoroughly enjoy my freedom. Life today is good,” said now-68-year-old Colleen, who rebuilt her life after the traumatic experience
Image credits: ImagesInSound
Colleen returned back to a normal life and became a mother in 1987.
“I thoroughly enjoy my freedom. Life today is good,” she said. She throws a beach party every year with her loved ones to celebrate her return home.
“You have to learn how to live in the now, and not let that past drag you back,” she added.
Years after Cameron was convicted in 1985, his sentence was reduced as a result of changes made in the state’s law. He is currently undergoing trial to determine whether he should continue to be considered a sexually violent predator.
“She’s got to be one of the bravest and most determined people I have ever seen,” one social media user said about Colleen’s story
