CHICAGO: A US man who held three young women captive for a decade was found hanged in the Ohio prison where he was serving a life sentence, officials said yesterday.
The death of Ariel Castro, 53, brought an abrupt and dramatic ending to a sordid case that shocked America and the world with its revelations of depravity and brutality carried out in an ordinary Cleveland home.
“It does appear to be an apparent case of suicide,” JoEllen Smith, a spokeswoman for the Ohio prisons department said.
Castro — who was sentenced last month over the abductions, rape and torture of the women — was being housed in protective custody, which means he was in a cell by himself and guards checked on him every 30 minutes.
Officials tried in vain to resuscitate Castro after his body was discovered at 9:20pm on Tuesday at the Correctional Reception Center in Orient. He was pronounced dead about 90 minutes later, according to a statement from the Ohio Department of Corrections. AFP
