In Brazil, a man is said to have held his wife and two sons as prisoners in his home for 17 years. Police arrested the man after an anonymous tip-off in the poor neighborhood of Guaratiba in western Rio de Janeiro and freed the family, authorities said Friday.
Police said the two sons were “tied up, dirty and malnourished”. She and her mother were taken to a hospital, dehydrated and starving. According to media reports, the sons are 19 and 22 years old, but look like children or teenagers in photos published by Brazilian media.
“You’ll only get out of here dead”
The mother told authorities, according to the G1 news portal, that she and her sons were sometimes without food for three days and were subjected to constant physical and psychological violence. The man she had been with for 23 years did not let his wife work and his sons did not go to school. “You must stay with me until the end, you will only come out dead,” he is said to have told his wife.
“We saw the condition in which the two children came out and I don’t think they would have survived another week,” a resident of Guaratiba told G1. The mother was so weak she could not speak.
Loud music to cover requests for help
Neighbors told media that the man was nicknamed “DJ” because he always played loud music – presumably to cover his family’s help. Residents also said they warned authorities two years ago, but are only now taking action. According to “G1” the man will have to answer for kidnapping, torture and ill-treatment, among other things.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
