Police say quartet were enticed to location with promise of beer and cigarettes and held against their will for up to 10 years
Police in Houston are investigating claims that four men have been held as long-term captives in dire conditions at a house in the city.
Officers received a call at about 8.25am local time Friday morning alleging that several men were being held against their will in a converted garage at a single-story home on Whitecastle Lane, 10 miles north of downtown.
Police arrived and found four men aged roughly from 50 to 80 living there. Three appeared to be malnourished and were taken to a local hospital. They had been at the house for varying lengths of time, with one claiming he had been kept there for about a decade. Officials are investigating whether the men are homeless invalids or military veterans who were forced to hand over their welfare money.
"All four said they had been enticed to that location with the promise of beer and cigarettes and not been allowed to leave," a police department spokesman told the Guardian. Several women with apparent mental disabilities were also found to be living there, he added.
One man who does not live at the property was detained for questioning and has not been charged, pending further investigation, the spokesman said.
Police said a man at the home told them it was "a dungeon", according to the Houston Chronicle.
Sergeant Steve Murdock told the paper that the four "were prisoners in that house", that conditions were "very deplorable" and it seemed that other men had previously been held there. Three men reportedly slept on a linoleum floor in a garage without access to a bathroom.
When officers arrived they found the front door nailed shut and a "prison room" filled with trash and without furniture, according to KTRK local news. Reported by guardian.co.uk 2 days ago.
Police in Houston are investigating claims that four men have been held as long-term captives in dire conditions at a house in the city.
Officers received a call at about 8.25am local time Friday morning alleging that several men were being held against their will in a converted garage at a single-story home on Whitecastle Lane, 10 miles north of downtown.
Police arrived and found four men aged roughly from 50 to 80 living there. Three appeared to be malnourished and were taken to a local hospital. They had been at the house for varying lengths of time, with one claiming he had been kept there for about a decade. Officials are investigating whether the men are homeless invalids or military veterans who were forced to hand over their welfare money.
"All four said they had been enticed to that location with the promise of beer and cigarettes and not been allowed to leave," a police department spokesman told the Guardian. Several women with apparent mental disabilities were also found to be living there, he added.
One man who does not live at the property was detained for questioning and has not been charged, pending further investigation, the spokesman said.
Police said a man at the home told them it was "a dungeon", according to the Houston Chronicle.
Sergeant Steve Murdock told the paper that the four "were prisoners in that house", that conditions were "very deplorable" and it seemed that other men had previously been held there. Three men reportedly slept on a linoleum floor in a garage without access to a bathroom.
When officers arrived they found the front door nailed shut and a "prison room" filled with trash and without furniture, according to KTRK local news. Reported by guardian.co.uk 2 days ago.