A 70-year-old lady was arrested in Sweden for allegedly locking up her son in an apartment. The man, now 41-year-old, had been captive for 28 years in an apartment in the southern Stockholm suburb of Haninge. The man was found with no teeth, sores on legs, and slurred speech.
According to the reports in two Swedish newspapers, Expressen and Aftonbladet, his mother had pulled him out of school when he was 13 and kept him locked since then.
“The mother is suspected of illegal deprivation of liberty and bodily harm,” the Stockholm police spokesman told Agence France-Presse (AFP). The officials said that a criminal investigation has started and investigators would be interviewing the mother, the son, and witnesses.
The mother has denied all charges by the police.
The incident came to light on 29th November, when the victim was found in a gruesome condition by a relative, who then alerted the police.
The mother had fallen sick and was admitted to a hospital. That’s when the relative went over to the apartment and found the door unlocked.
The witness told the police that she found the victim in the kitchen, sitting on some blankets and pillows. She said that she saw ‘dirt, urine, and dust’ and that it looked like no one cleaned that house in years. She further added that the place smelt rotten.
She said that they knew the mother was controlling her son’s life. They just didn’t expect this was the extent of it.