Ariel Castro, the Cleveland man charged with abducting, raping and imprisoning three women over a 10-year period, appeared this morning at Cleveland municipal court on four counts of kidnapping and three of rape.
It gave the public its first clean look at the alleged deviant, who did not enter a formal plea but previously “confessed” to police that he lured his unsuspecting victims into his car and held them hostage, bound by ropes and chains, while using them as sex slaves and siring multiple pregnancies.
Castro stared shamefully at the ground, burying his face in the zipped-up collar of his dark blue jumpsuit, as a judge ordered him held on $8 million bond — $2 million per victim: Amanda Berry, Michelle Knight, Gina DeJesus, and Berry’s 6-year-old daughter, whom Castro is believed to have sired.
Meanwhile, his brothers, Pedro and Onil, who were originally arrested along with Ariel — were released after arraignment on old misdemeanor charges unrelated to the kidnapping.
Below are several images of Castro in court today.
All photos via Getty Images.
