Grim new photos have captured the soiled insides of a “house of horrors” where a woman is alleged to have kept her young stepson captive for nearly two thirds of his life. Kimberly Sullivan is accused of locking her stepson inside a box-like room at her home in Connecticut, the US, from the age of just 11.
The unidentified man, now 32, was only released in February this year after he was allegedly subject to abuse for 20 years, during which Sullivan, 56, is said to have withheld food and denied bathroom access. A series of distressing photographs have revealed the inhumane conditions in which he is said to have lived, leaving him looking “akin to an Auschwitz survivor”.
The photos, released by police in Waterbury, reveal dirt and debris scattered on the floor of the run-down property, which was in a state of visible decay when Sullivan’s stepson was discovered. Police said the man was kept in a room on an upper floor of the home, where he lived without heat or air conditioning.
Prosecutors also allege he was only briefly allowed outside by Sullivan to complete chores at the home, and that he wasn’t discovered until he set fire to the property on February 17. The new photos showing the blackened aftermath of the blaze, with nearly every inch of the floor covered in debris.
Sullivan was charged with assault, kidnapping, unlawful restraint, cruelty and reckless endangerment. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Medics have said the five foot nine man had wasting syndrome and was near starvation when he was admitted to a hospital, weighing just 69 pounds (31kg).
They added he was treated for smoke inhalation and subsequently diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. He later said he had been confined at the home from the age of 11, adding he had only received limited food and water during his alleged internment.
He was also allegedly left without dental care, leaving his teeth so fragile that they would break off in pieces, and claimed he had saved some of his daily water rations – just two small water bottles – to bathe without soap and cut his own hair. When he was found, his father had recently died and he was not in contact with his biological mother.
The father, Kregg Sullivan, was said to have let him out of the room where he was kept for longer periods before his death last year. He claimed to have been taken out of class and kept at home in 2004 after teachers called child welfare officials with concerns about his wellbeing, with his family having then reportedly said they were planning to home school him.
Tom Pannone, a former principal at the elementary school, told WVIT-TV officials had repeatedly called Sullivan and child welfare agencies to voice their concerns.
They had noted he was too think and stealing food to eat from the rubbish. Sullivan posted a $300,000 (£232,000) bail after her arrest and was ordered to be placed on electronic monitoring.
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Cookie Notice.