Shocking police footage has revealed the horrific conditions where a woman was kept as a slave for 25 years.
Amanda Wixon, a mother-of-ten, was accused of keeping a vulnerable woman as a slave in a filthy room for a quarter of a century, having first welcomed her into her home when she was a teenager in 1996.
Finally, in 2021, she was finally reported to police by her own son and is now facing a hefty sentence after she was found guilty during a two-week trial at Gloucester Crown Court recently.
Now in her 40s, the victim was forced to live and work in 'filthy' conditions, was regularly fed nothing but leftovers and gave off a distinctive odour when she was first discovered, admitting that she hadn't been allowed to bathe in over a year.
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Police described her room as similar to a 'prison cell', as the windows and doors were locked during the night, while she hadn't stepped outside the home in more than two decades.
The victim was also subject to some terrifying abuse during her time living with Wixon, as she had her head pushed down a toilet and flushed, her teeth knocked out with a broom, while bleach was thrown on her face and washing up liquid squirted down her throat.
Prosecutor Sam Jones told the jury: "She was kept in and prevented from leaving the address and she was assaulted and hit many, many times and forced to work with the threats of violence.
"She had been denied food and the ability to wash over many years.
"The lack of records from the hospital, the doctor and the dentist or any involvement with social services for 20 years provides further support of her never being allowed to leave the house.
"By the late 1990s it appears the woman disappeared into a black hole. Not a single meeting that left a record or a single sighting of her outside the house."
Detective Sergeant Alex Pockett, from Gloucestershire Police, said he had 'not come across a case like this' in the entirety of his career.
"She was treated really, really badly while she was in the address," he said, adding: "It’s clear that it’s had a massive impact on the victim."
Now, after the 56-year-old was officially found guilty, police have released the body cam footage from the day of arrest back in March 2021.
Police discovered the victim, who was visibly timid, bruised and unclean in a filthy bedroom with unpainted walls and unwashed bedding.
While her identity is being protected, the footage does reveal the moment of Wixon's arrest, and shows off the disgusting conditions in which the victim was forced to live.
The police officers then discover a note underneath her pillow which reveals some phone numbers, while some coins were also discovered.
As she left Gloucester Crown Court, Wixon was asked whether she had anything to say to the woman she had kept as a 'house slave' for over 25 years, to which she coldly told reporters: "Not a lot."
When quizzed over whether she was sorry about her crimes, the mum then gave a chilling response, saying: "No. I never done it."
"Why would I be sorry for something I claim I had never done," Wixon said, before a reporter pointed out that she could be locked up for up to 10 years at her sentencing in March.
"I know that," she sniped back. "Do you think I am stupid? Do you think I don’t know that?"
Fortunately, the victim is now living with a foster family and attending college, but reportedly still suffers regular nightmares about her ordeal and has a constant urge to clean.
James Moorhouse