Man says he was held captive in room 20 years and set fire to escape, but stepmother denies all

Waterbury, Conn. — A Connecticut man who said he was held captive for 20 years was rescued after setting fire to his room and telling first responders he did it to gain his freedom, police said Wednesday.

The man's stepmother was charged with cruelty and kidnapping.

Waterbury first responders rescued the emaciated 32-year-old man from an upstairs room after they were deployed to a house fire last month, police said in a statement. While being treated for smoke inhalation, he revealed that he intentionally set the blaze.

"I wanted my freedom," the man said, according to police. He said he had been held captive since he was about 11 years old.

An investigation revealed that the man, whose name was not released, "had been held in captivity for over 20 years, enduring prolonged abuse, starvation, severe neglect, and inhumane treatment," police said, adding that he had not received medical or dental care during that time.

"The suffering this victim endured for over 20 years is both heartbreaking and unimaginable," Chief Fernando Spagnolo said in a statement.

Kimberly Sullivan, 56, identified as the man's stepmother, was charged with assault, kidnapping, unlawful restraint, cruelty and reckless endangerment. She was arraigned Wednesday and held in lieu of $300,000 bond.

She owns the home and was in the house when the fire started but evacuated safely, CBS Hartford, Connecticut, affiliate WFSB-TV reports.

The man "lit a fire with some hand sanitizer, some paper from a printer, and he lit that fire while he was locked in that room from the outside. He lit that fire very well knowing he could die, but he had been locked in the room for 20 years, and for 20 years he'd been trying to get out of that room," a prosecutor said in court Wednesday, according to the station.

Sullivan's attorney, Ioannis Kaloidis, said her client was "stunned to hear the allegations" and denies them.

"What she indicated to me was that they were absolutely not true, and as we get more information we intend to put up a vigorous defense," Kaloidis told The Associated Press by phone. "But she's adamant she did not do the things that she's accused of."

He said he was still gathering information and couldn't immediately say whether anyone else lived in the home.

In court, WFSB reports, Sullivan's lawyer said, "Absolutely not true. (The man) was not locked in a room. She did not restrain him in any way. She provided food and she provided shelter and she was blown away by these allegations. Absolutely not."

When he was taken to the hospital, he only weighed about 68 pounds, WFSB noted.

"He was, without exaggeration, akin to a survivor of Auschwitz's death camp," the prosecutor said.