The woman accused of holding her stepson captive in their ‘house of horrors’ for 20 years has issued a firm response against the allegations.
Kimberly Sullivan was arrested earlier this week after a 32-year-old man started a fire to escape and get ‘freedom’.
The victim set the home on fire in February, with responders finding him in a ‘severely emaciated condition’ before he accused the 56-year-old of keeping him captive since he was about 11-years-old.
Sullivan has been charged with assault in the first degree, kidnapping in the second degree, unlawful restraint in the first degree, cruelty to persons, and reckless endangerment in the first degree.
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But as sickening details of this case are revealed, the woman has denied all allegations.
While police say the victim feared telling anyone about the situation due to her threats of the consequences, Sullivan was apparently stunned by the accusation.
Her attorney, Ioannis Kaloidis, says she ‘completely maintains her innocence’.
“These allegations are not true. They are outlandish. She was blown away when she heard these allegations,” Kaloidis said, per NBC Connecticut. “We look forward to being able to vindicate her and show that she’s done nothing wrong.”
He also said Sullivan never locked her stepson in a room, calling the allegation ‘absolutely not true’.
As an affidavit describes how the victim was kept in a 8-by-9-foot room with neighbours once spotting a ‘little boy’ in the window, police said: “Detectives determined that the victim had been held in captivity for over 20 years, enduring prolonged abuse, starvation, severe neglect, and inhumane treatment.”
But Kaloidis continued: “She did not restrain him in any way. She provided food, she provided shelter. She is blown away by these allegations. It is shocking and what's more shocking to me? It's how somebody can (be) falsely accused of such a thing.”
Sullivan’s attorney claimed her husband (who reportedly passed away in January 2024) dictated how his son would be raised.
Police say the victim’s father was in a wheelchair prior to his death due to medical reasons.
Kaloidis said: “We think as the evidence comes out, you'll see that she's not the villain she's being made out to be, absolutely not.”
The attorney added that the allegations ‘seem to be based on the words of one individual and one individual alone’.
“I did not see anything in the warrant to indicate any independent evidence to corroborate these allegations. We'll see how they stand up at trial,” he added.
With a police chief saying it is ‘one of the worst acts of inhumanity’ he’s ever seen, Sullivan’s next court date is set for March 26.
Jess Battison