Video And After The Jump
Three Cleveland women who vanished at different times during adolescence roughly a decade ago were miraculously found alive Monday in a city home after a neighbor heard a desperate cry for help and kicked the door down.
Amanda Berry (center) reunited with her sister (l.) in the hospital after Berry and two other women who had been missing for a decade were found alive in a house not far from where they were last seen.
Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were delivered from captivity when Berry managed to stick her arm through the home’s busted front door about 6 p.m., drawing the attention of neighbor Charles Ramsey.
“I heard screaming ... and I see this girl going nuts trying to get outside,” said Ramsey. “I go on the porch and she said, ‘Help me get out! I’ve been here a long time!’”
“She says, ‘Call 911! My name is Amanda Berry!’”
Ramsey said he kicked open the door, unlocking the secrets concealed in the home on Seymour Ave., just south of Cleveland’s downtown.
Berry, missing for a decade and now 27, begged a 911 dispatcher once outside to send police.
“I’ve been kidnapped, and I’ve been missing for 10 years,” she cried out. “And I’m here! I’m free now!”
Also inside the home were DeJesus, who disappeared nine years ago and is now 23, and Knight, 32, who went missing 12 years ago.
Berry's 6-year-old daughter was also found inside the home, cops said.
Police took three brothers into custody. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that one of them, Ariel Castro, 52, is the home’s owner and has lived there since 1992.
Authorities planned a press conference for Tuesday, releasing no details about the captivity of the three women — cases that long stumped investigators. At least three times in recent years, police dug for a body of one of the women, acting on bogus information.
“We have many unanswered questions regarding this case, and the investigation will be ongoing,” said Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson. “I am thankful that these three young ladies are found and alive.”
All three women were examined at Metro Health Medical Center and released Tuesday morning, hospital officials said.
Berry disappeared on April 21, 2003, a day before her 17th birthday, after calling her sister to say she was getting a ride home from her job at a Cleveland Burger King. DeJesus was 14 when she vanished while walking home from school on April 2, 2004. Knight, 19 when she disappeared, was last seen at a cousin’s home on Aug. 23, 2002.
911 Audio
Amanda Berry 911 call
Charles Ramsey interview
History of missing women
Timeline of Berry, DeJesus going missing
Cleveland police news conference on Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight
Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight found alive in Cleveland
Cleveland kidnapping suspect information
Social media reaction to Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus found
Gina's best friend reacts to her being found
Who is Michelle Knight?
Amanda Berry's family reacts to her being found
Charles Ramsey describes finding missing women
More family reaction: Amanda Berry
Neighbor describes Ariel Castro
Neighbor reacts to discovery
Timeline of disappearance
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