Officials: Ariel Castro May Have Died from Auto-Erotic Asphyxiation
Ariel Castro, the Cleveland man who kidnapped three young women and kept them captive in his basement for ten years, might have died from auto-erotic asphyxiation, not suicide, according to a report from the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
While the report did not formally conclude that auto-erotic asphyxiation was the cause of death, it suggests it, noting several irregularities about Castro's presumed suicide. For instance, Castro's body was reportedly discovered with his pants and underwear pulled down to his ankles, and “multiple levels of assessment” found that Castro was not suicidal. There was no suicide note.
WOIO in Cleveland, however, reports that a bible and pictures of Castro's family were laid out near his body and that Castro attached a sheet to the hinge of his window to hang himself.
According to the report, two prison guards responsible for checking on Castro falsified documents; surveillance camera footage shows the guards did not complete the eight required checks on Castro the evening of his death, though they did complete the two scheduled checks just before Castro hanged himself.
[Image via AP]