A neighbour of the woman arrested for kidnapping her stepson and allegedly holding him captive for over 20 years has said she made a chilling remark after he escaped.
Last month in Waterbury, Connecticut, firefighters responded to a fire at a house and recovered a 32-year-old man from the property.
He needed medical attention for smoke inhalation, and as he was out of the house, he told the emergency services that he'd started the blaze in order to escape from his stepmother Kimberly Sullivan.
The man claimed she'd kept him captive in the house since he was 11, and told those treating him: "I wanted my freedom."
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Looking into the man's claims, the 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.
“He was found in a severely emaciated condition and had not received medical or dental care during this time.”
They described the man as 'extremely malnourished' and said he had only received 'minimal amounts of food and water', and he started the fire with printer paper, hand sanitiser, and a lighter.
Sullivan was 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.
Her attorneys said she was 'stunned to hear the allegations' and denied the charges.
A neighbour told CNN that he spoke to Sullivan the day after the fire when she told him: "I just want to get out of here."
He explained to the publication that from the outside the house, everything looked normal, and there was no indication that someone was being held captive there.
Other neighbours described encountering the captive when he was a child years ago, including a moment when he waved to them from a window.
The 32-year-old man, who says his stepmother held him captive for over 20 years, described being 'locked in his room between 22 to 24 hours a day'.
He said his link to the outside world was a radio outside his bedroom door, which let him track what year it was, and an affidavit said he 'had ultimately educated himself' using the few books he was provided with each year.
Waterbury Police Chief Fred Spagnolo said the case was 'the worst treatment of humanity that I’ve ever witnessed' in 33 years in law enforcement.
"It appeared that the locks increased in security levels as time progressed, and obviously he became older and maybe a little bit stronger," he added.
Joe Harker