Three Cleveland women who were held captive for years were rescued Monday night. Police are currently investigating the incident.
According to CNN, the events began on Monday night, when Amanda Berry, 27, began an attempt to get out of the house where she and Georgina "Gina" DeJesus, 23; and Michelle Knight, 32, were being held captive. A neighbor, Charles Ramsey, heard Berry trying to get out of the house and screaming. “I see this girl going nuts trying to get out of a house,” Ramsay told WEWS. “I go on the porch and she says, 'help me get out. I've been in here a long time.’”
Ramsey kicked in the door, entered that home and told Ramsey “Call 911, my name is Amanda Berry.” After she was free, both Ramsey and Berry called 911. you can hear Ramsey’s call here.
ABC News reports that Ramsey told local media that he didn’t recognize Berry’s name until he was on the phone. “When she told me [her name,] it didn't register until I called 911. I'm calling 911 for Amanda Berry. I thought that girl was dead,” he said.
This was the first time Berry had been seen since she was abducted in April 2003. She was 17 at the time. DeJesus hadn’t been seen since April 2004, when she was 14. Knight was reported missing in August 2002. Police also freed a 6-year-old girl who is believed to be Perry’s daughter.
NBC News reports that three brothers - Ariel Castro, Onil Castro and Pedro Castro - have been arrested for holding them captive. Cleveland police are still trying to figure out how the brothers could have held the women for so long. Police actually knocked on their door in 2004, but no one answered and the cops never returned.
“We're happy that they have returned to us," Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson said Tuesday during a press conference. “We have several unanswered questions. Why were they taken, how they were taken and how they remained undetected in the city of Cleveland for all this time.”