Ariel Castro Dead: Kidnapper Found Hanging in Jail Cell
Ariel Castro, the man famous for holding three young women hostage in his home for nearly 10 years has been found dead in his jail cell, after reportedly committing suicide.
According to reports, Castro was found hanging in his cell Tuesday evening; guards immediately got him down and performed CPR before transferring him to a local hospital. He was pronounced dead around 10:50 p.m. Castro was in protective custody and was looked in on every 30 minutes, which was different from the intense suicide watch he was initially put on. Suicide watch requires constant observation.
Castro was sentenced to life in prison plus 1,000 years for his guilty plea to 937 counts, including kidnapping and rape. He managed to kidnap Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight when they were still in their teens. Berry was able to lead the girls in an escape, which set things in motion rather quickly. As more details were revealed, more charges were brought against Castro.
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During the trial, Castro never admitted to his crimes, except to plead guilty. He instead insisted that he was "not a monster" but was "sick."
"I do want to let you know there was harmony in that home," Castro claimed during sentencing. "I was a good person."
Michelle Knight offered a powerful statement before Castro was sentenced and led away.
"You took 11 years of my life away, and I have got it back. I spent 11 years in hell. Now your hell is just beginning. I will overcome all that happened, but you will face hell for eternity," Knight said.
There will likely be an investigation into the situation to make sure that the guards on duty were not negligible in watching Castro. His attorneys tried to argue that Castro had a sociopathic disorder and urged researchers to speak with him, and study him in order to stop further cases like his.
