Mother Allegedly Held Stepson Captive for 20 Years Before He Lit Fire to Escape: 'Something Out of a Horror Movie'

A Connecticut woman was arrested this week after a man identified as her stepson told police he started a house fire at their shared residence to escape decades of her alleged abuse.

Kimberly Sullivan, 56, is accused of holding her 32-year-old stepson captive since he was 11, the Waterbury Police Department said in a statement. She was taken into police custody on Wednesday, March 12.

“The suffering this victim endured for over 20 years is both heartbreaking and unimaginable. This case required relentless investigative effort, and I commend the dedication of our officers and the Waterbury State’s Attorney’s Office,” Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo said.

“Their unwavering commitment ensured that justice is served, and the perpetrator is held fully accountable for these horrific crimes,” Spagnolo continued.

After the Waterbury Fire Department helped put the flames out in Sullivan’s home on the evening of Feb. 17, the 32-year-old told “first responders that he had intentionally set the fire in his upstairs room, stating, ‘I wanted my freedom,’ ” police said. The alleged victim was not publicly identified.

“The facts of this case, quite frankly, the facts are something out of a horror movie. That’s without exaggeration,” Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Don Therkildsen said, per the CT Post.

Sullivan was charged with assault in the first degree, kidnapping in the second degree, unlawful restraint in the first degree, cruelty to persons and reckless endangerment in the first degree.

After the “alarming” allegations from her stepson, authorities launched an investigation which found that “the victim had been held in captivity for over 20 years, enduring prolonged abuse, starvation, severe neglect, and inhumane treatment,” the Waterbury Police Department said in their statement.

According to police, the 32-year-old was discovered “in a severely emaciated condition and had not received medical or dental care” while living with his stepmother.

The situation got worse when the stepson’s father died last year, the victim told police, per a warrant for Sullivan’s arrest.

Sullivan appeared in court for arraignment on Wednesday.

“He lit a fire with some hand sanitizer, some paper from a printer, and he lit that fire while he was locked in that room from the outside. He lit that fire very well knowing he could die, but he had been locked in the room for 20 years, and for 20 years he’d been trying to get out of that room,” prosecutors said during the arraignment, WFSB-TV 3 reported.

Citing a warrant, the outlet reported that the 32-year-old weighed about 68 pounds, and had not left the home since he was 14 or 15 years old.

He was also allegedly removed from school when he was in the fourth grade.

Sullivan’s attorney, Ioannis A. Kaloidis, denied any wrongdoing on his client’s behalf and called the allegations “outlandish.”

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“She was blown away when she heard these allegations,” the lawyer told reporters. “She’s adamant they are not true. This did not happen and we look forward to being able to vindicate her and show that she’s done nothing wrong.”

Kaloidis added, “These allegations seemed to be based on the words of one individual and one individual alone.”

Sullivan’s bond was set at $300,000, and she will be placed in the custody of the Connecticut Department of Corrections, police said.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.