Ariel Castro Dead: Cleveland Kidnapper
Found Hanging In Prison Cell
Sep 04, 2013
Convicted kidnapper and rapist Ariel Castro was
found dead on Tuesday evening, 19 Action News
reported. He was 53.
On Aug. 1, Castro was sentenced to life plus 1,000
years in prison for kidnapping and raping Amanda
Berry, Michelle Knight and Gina DeJesus, and
holding them captive in his Cleveland home for
more than a decade.
He pleaded guilty to 937 counts, including murder
and kidnapping, in exchange for the death penalty
being taken off the table, CNN reported.
During the sentencing, Castro denied being
abusive and insisted that most of the sex was
consensual.
'I'm not a violent person," Castro said. "I simply
kept them there without them being able to leave."
The three women disappeared separately between
2002 and 2004. They escaped on May 6, when
one of the women broke part of a door and yelled
to neighbors for help. Castro was arrested that
same night.
According to JoEllen Smith of the Ohio Department
of Corrections, Castro was found hanging in his
prison cell at the Correctional Reception Center in
Orient, Ohio, around 9:20 p.m. Tuesday. Although
prison medical staff performed lifesaving
measures, he was later pronounced dead at the
Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
At the time of his death, Castro was isolated from
other inmates for his own protection. He was
Ohio State Police and the Department of
Corrections are investigating the death.