Cleveland Man Arraigned On Rape, Kidnap Charges
CLEVELAND (KDKA/AP) - A Cleveland man has been arraigned on charges of rape and kidnapping days after three women missing for about a decade were found alive at his home.
Ariel Castro appeared in court Thursday morning. He looked down at the ground while lawyers spoke to the judge. Bond was set at $2 million on each case.
Police say they've talked with both Castro, who is a former school bus driver, and the three women at length in building their case.
While they're not revealing many details, police do say the women were kept inside Castro's house for all but a few brief minutes over the last 10 years.
The community surrounding three women who were found in Cleveland alive, more than 10 years after going missing is relieved.
The aunt of Gina DeJesus, one of the three women found, says she is so happy and relieved to have her niece back.
Before this week, police had been to Castro's house twice — once in 2000 for a fight in the street and again in 2004 when a child welfare official accused Castro of leaving a child unattended on a bus, but no one answered the door.
The three women disappeared separately between 2002 and 2004 and were found Monday after one of them screamed for help to escape and contacted police.
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