by Patrick H. Moore
First we had Ariel Castro imprisoning and raping and abusing Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight for 10 long years in Cleveland. Then we had the abhorrent Walter Renard Jones keeping four elderly men locked up in his dungeon-like garage in Houston so that he could collect their government checks. Very recently, it was the repulsive Madison, Wisconsin woman Melinda Drabek-Chritton imprisoning her 15-year-old 68 pound stepdaughter in her basement.
Now, Michael Walsh of the New York Daily News reports that Regina Bennett, a 46-year-old Philadelphia woman, was arrested on Sunday for keeping a special needs woman in captivity in appalling conditions in her basement. Ironically, this latest case would not have been discovered had Ms. Bennett not gotten in a brawl with her neighbor Liza Figueroa which got so out of hand that the police were summoned.
First, the police broke up the fight and arrested Bennett around midnight for allegedly threatening and physically assaulting Figueroa at her residence on Linton Street. As officers were leaving, neighbors told them that a small child may also have been living in Bennett’s residence.
Initially, police saw no signs of a child living at the residence. But after conducting a full walk-through, they found a 36-year-old woman tied to a bed in “unsuitable conditions.” The woman was extremely thin, with apparent sores and injuries to her body. According to one of the arresting officers, she also seemed to have special needs and has a limited vocabulary.
The woman was liberated by officers and transported to Einstein Hospital, where she was being evaluated Sunday. The authorities said it appears to be a case of neglect, and police are unsure for how long the alleged abuse had been going on. There is also an investigation underway to determine whether the woman had been sexually abused.
Bennett is being held at Philadelphia Police Headquarters. She is charged with terroristic threats, simple assault, public drunkenness, aggravated assault, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment and related offenses.
In an interview with NBC-affiliate WCAU following the rescue, alleged assault victim Figueroa stated:
“I would of never imagined that the police officers yesterday, resulting from the altercation that I had with her, [would discover] that she had someone tied up in her basement.”
Family members told Philadelphia station WTXF that Bennett was the woman’s caregiver and cousin.
“This is some shocking news to me. I can’t believe it,” one of Bennett’s cousins said.
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In response to this string of brutal imprisonments, I ran some numbers. Based on a population of 330,000000, if one out of every 5,000 Americans is keeping someone prisoner in their home, that means there are around 6,600 victims languishing in horrible conditions nationwide. One out of every 5,000 may not be an unreasonable number and could be a conservative estimate. Some of these victims are being held as sex slaves, but the majority of them are probably being held for their government checks or whatever other funds they may be receiving. In any event, it’s becoming increasingly clear that far too many helpless and vulnerable Americans are being held prisoner against their will by individuals who have no place in our society.
Click here to view posts describing innocent victims being held in captivity against their will:
Wisconsin Woman Gets Five Years in Prison for Starving 15-Year-Old Step-Daughter
Move Over Ariel Castro: Houston Man Holds 4 Men in Dungeon Against Their Will
Ariel Castro Is Defiant Till the End
Ariel Castro Pleads Guilty in Cleveland 3 Kidnapping Case: Will Not Receive Death Penalty
Ariel Castro Chained, Starved and Beat Michelle Knight and Gina DeJesus
New Emily Castro Shocker: Ariel Castro Used His Daughters to Find Him Victims in Their Neighborhood
Ariel Castro’s Daughter Emily Is Serving 25 Years in Prison for Slashing Her Baby’s Throat