Michelle Knight, age 32, had been missing since 2002. Amanda Berry had been missing since 2003. A third woman, Gina DeJesus was abducted in 2004 at the tender age of 14, while walking home from school. All three women are victims of a sadistic serial abductor who were found alive nearly 10 years later. Recent news reports have stated that they were confined to a house in Cleveland, Ohio.
It is believed that Ariel Castro, age 52, and two of his brothers had kept the women chained and locked inside the suburban Cleveland residence. It has been confirmed that the women were beaten, raped and tortured on a daily basis for over a decade.
Berry was last seen on April 21, 2003. At the time, the 16-year-old was walking home from her job at a local Burger King restaurant, when she suddenly went missing. Family members became concerned when she did not arrive home for her birthday party, later that evening.
On May 6, 2013, Berry made a desperate escape attempt and wanted to return back home. She successfully phoned police from a neighbor’s house, which facilitated their rescue.
The three abductees are said to have potentially known Castro, making it believable that he could have easily swayed them into entering his web. Upon entering the house where Berry and her captive comrades were being held, police found a plethora of chains, ties and other apparatuses used in their 10 years of tortured captivity.
Neighbor Charles Ramsey : ‘I Got Amanda Berry, Send the Police Out’
WKYC in Cleveland is reporting that all three women were forced into sexual encounters with their captors on numerous occasions, which may have resulted in at least five pregnancies during their time spent captive. At least one child is believed to be born from Amanda Berry, survived and was rescued alongside the abducted trio.
Leading the way in law enforcement’s case against the suspected captors, is scientifically-accurate DNA testing. The process, which identifies specific genomic markers in a person’s genetic makeup can be used to accurately determine kinship, parenthood and other relationships via comparison. It can also assist in sexual assault identification. This form of scientific demarcation will seal the prosecution’s case against the men accused of this despicable act.
DNA testing has become a major force in assisting police with its crime solving applications. When biological crime scene evidence is collected properly, valuable DNA can be found, and extruded. Therefore, it is capable of identifying the perpetrator(s) of current and past crimes via the creation of a nationwide database.
Collected DNA profiles at the local, state and federal levels have greatly enhanced law enforcement’s efficiency. Offender databases store millions of DNA profiles. Against them, DNA profiles that have been developed from crime scene evidence can be analyzed and closely compared.
