A man who was allegedly imprisoned for 20 years by his own stepmother has asked a heartbreaking question as investigations into the case continue.
The unnamed man, who is now 32, set fire to his own home in Connecticut on February 17, launching a daring escape from the room in which he claims to have been kept since the age of 11.
The five foot nine man weighed just 31kg when he was found, which fits in with his claims that he was constantly under-fed by his stepmum Kimberly Sullivan, who denies the allegations.
He claims he he was also subject to 'inhumane treatment' in the 'house of horror', and was locked inside his own room for between 22 and 24 hours a day, having been removed from the education system in the US back in 2004.
Even during his time in education, teachers realised something was wrong, as he would try and eat out of the bin and was 'constantly hungry', but sadly there were no real investigations after they were told he had moved to another school.
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After he was initially found by police after setting the fire, they quickly realised something bigger was at play when he revealed what he claims had been going on.
They said: "Detectives determined that the victim had been held in captivity for over 20 years, enduring prolonged abuse, starvation, severe neglect, and inhumane treatment.
“He was found in a severely emaciated condition and had not received medical or dental care during this time.”
Despite it being well over a month since he was discovered, Sullivan, who reportedly made a chilling remark to a neighbour at the time of the fire, remains on bail, which led to a heartbreaking question from her accuser recently.
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Supervisory Assistant State's Attorney Don Therkildsen Jr. expressed the alleged victim's shock that his stepmother remains free following her recent court appearance - in which she pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping, unlawful restraint, cruelty and reckless endangerment.
Therkildsen Jr. said: "This victim is afraid. This victim lives in fear. I introduced myself to the victim, explained who I was. His first question in this fear is, ‘Why is she out walking around when I was locked up in a room for 20 years?'"
While Sullivan is under electric monitoring, she is not under house arrest, which the accuser believes could lead to a flight risk ahead of future court dates.
Her next court appearance is scheduled for 22 April.
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Superior Court Judge Joseph Schwartz defended the decision to not place her under arrest, citing the fact that she has no permanent address after the fire, has no prior convictions and hasn't failed to turn up to court.
However, he also added: "On the other hand, I can see the argument someone could show again, just according to the allegations, someone that can show such an extreme indifference to human life have such a lack of empathy.
"If that person could commit that type of crime, they’re certainly likely to commit another thing.”
“The allegations are arguably the most troubling that I’ve seen during my tenure as a judge and show really an unthinkable amount of lack of empathy, and I do stress that they are just allegations.”
James Moorhouse