Video shows rescue of CT man held captive, stepmom's 911 call
Body cam shows house fire set by captive CT stepson
New dramatic body camera footage shows firefighters responding to the house fire set by the 32-year-old man held captive by his stepmother as a cry for help. FOX 5 NY's Teresa Priolo breaks down the details.
Dramatic video obtained by FOX 5 NY shows the moment firefighters rescued a 32-year-old man who was allegedly held captive by his stepmother for decades and set fire to their home to escape.
FOX 5 NY has also obtained alleged captor Kim Sullivan's 911 to police.
The man told authorities his confinement began when he was about 11 years old. He said he was locked in a room without heat or air conditioning nearly all day and night and given limited food and water.
Here's what happened the day he set his home on fire:
Body camera footage + 911 call
Timeline:
The years of cruelty ended Feb. 17, when he set fire to the house in Waterbury in a deliberate effort to save himself.
Sullivan called 911, begging emergency responders and "an ambulance" to come to their burning Blake Street home because her stepson "did something with the TV."
"Did he get injured? Is he on fire?" the dispatcher asks.
"Yes! He's injured. Please send an ambulance … I don't know, he's kind of passed out," Sullivan says.
Body camera shows the rescue efforts, with a firefighter seen carrying someone out of the home. Medical personnel later said Sullivan's stepson was near starvation and had wasting syndrome, a condition of weight loss and muscle deterioration, when he got to a hospital, the warrant says. At 5 feet, 9 inches tall, he weighed only 69 pounds.
Sullivan is seen frantically yelling at the emergency responders while carrying a small dog.
"Everybody's out?" a firefighter asks.
"Yes," Sullivan responds.
"But your stepson is still inside" the firefighter says.
What happened to 'Male Victim 1' in Waterbury, Connecticut?
CT man escapes after 20 years of captivity
A shocking case of captivity and abuse has surfaced in Waterbury, Connecticut, after a 32-year-old man set fire to his home to escape what he described as two decades of imprisonment. Authorities found him severely emaciated, weighing just 68 pounds, after allegedly being locked in a small room, starved, and forced to drink from the toilet for survival. His stepmother, 56-year-old Kimberly Sullivan, is now facing multiple charges, including kidnapping and assault. FOX 5’s Teresa Priolo has the disturbing details.
The man, identified as "Male Victim 1" in police records, told a shocking story of cruelty and constant hunger as he was held captive in a single room for 20 years by his father and stepmother, according to an arrest warrant.
With no access to a bathroom, he devised ways to dispose of his waste, including using a series of straws that led to a hole in a window. Pieces of his teeth would break off when he did eat because of a lack of dental care. He saved some of his daily ration of two small water bottles to bathe without soap and cut his own hair.
Police are now trying to determine how this could have happened without anyone noticing and whether any warning signs were missed. Investigators want to look at records from city schools and the state child welfare agency, Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo said at a news conference Thursday.
The stepmother, Kimberly Sullivan, 56, posted $300,000 bail Thursday and was released from custody after appearing in Waterbury Superior Court, said her lawyer, Ioannis Kaloidis. He said Sullivan, who was arrested on Wednesday, denies any wrongdoing. Her next court date is March 26.
The man's father died last year, while his biological mother has not been a part of his life, authorities said. He and Sullivan lived in the home that he set on fire.
The Source: This article uses information from the Associated Press and the town of Waterbury.