A Connecticut woman who has been tortured for over 20 years, starved, and captured her son-in-law in a terrifying house, remains on bail after pleading not guilty Friday, prosecutors have revealed that the severely debilitated victim lives in constant “terror.”
Kimberly Sullivan, 56, entered the plea after the dramatic rescue of 32-year-old Stepson from his burning Waterbury home last month revealed a pattern of alleged abuse that authorities compared to a “horror film.”
Prosecutors wanted to have a stepmother who posted bail following a widely publicized arrest earlier this month, but the judge refused the request and ordered him to wear a GPS ankle monitor instead.
“This victim is afraid, this victim is terrified,” prosecutor Donald Tilkelson told the court as he tried to tighten Sullivan's current bail conditions.
He added that when he first introduced himself, the suspect asked:
Sullivan is charged with cruelty and temptation after she alleged that her severely debilitated son-in-law suffered him into a small room, starving him and robbing him of water so badly that he was forced to drink from the toilet.
The shocking details only emerged after an unidentified victim was opened up to police about a hellish situation he was forced to endure since childhood after deliberately burning his home to escape a nightmare on February 17th.
The investigation determined that he had been held captive for more than 20 years.
“He resembles a survivor of Auschwitz's death camp without exaggeration,” officials said of the victim's condition shortly after being rescued.
The victim weighed only 69 pounds when released, authorities said. For comparison, CDC data suggest that an “average” 32-year-old American man weighs just under 200 pounds.
Sullivan posted a $300,000 bail shortly after his arrest, repeatedly said Denied allegations of illness.
“I understand that the whole world is jumping on these allegations and that I have already convicted my client,” Sullivan's lawyer, Ionis Kaloydos, told reporters earlier this week.
“But the good thing about America is that it's not how we work. She's presumed to be guilty until otherwise proven in court.”
