19 Investigates: The Missing: Marking the 10-year anniversary of the Miracle in Cleveland

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – This week marks 10 years since the city of Cleveland and the nation witnessed a true miracle.

Three heroic Cleveland women, two who were kidnapped as teenagers, trapped and tortured for nearly a decade, were found alive back on May 6, 2013.

That’s after years in captivity at a Seymour Avenue home in Cleveland where they were often chained up in the basement.

Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were all kidnapped by Ariel Castro of Cleveland between 2002 and 2004.

Berry escaped the house of horrors one day, with her child and called 911 to get help for the two others.

Miracle in Cleveland: Further coverage marking the 10-year anniversary

Ten Years Later: Gina, Amanda, and Michelle

It’s a case that sent shockwaves through Cleveland and beyond. On May 6, 2013, three young women were found alive inside Ariel Castro’s house of horrors on the city’s near west side. Gina DeJesus, Amanda Berry and Michelle Knight had been abducted and held captive for years until one of the women was able to escape and get help.

Castro pleaded guilty to 937 charges and was sentenced to life in prison, plus 1,000 years, but he ultimately hanged himself in his cell.

19 News will mark the 10-year anniversary of the Cleveland kidnapping victims’ freedom, with live broadcasts on Friday, May 5, from the Cleveland Family Center for Missing Children and Adults.

The center was founded by DeJesus and her cousin Sylvia Colon, and it’s a local resource for families that’s now making a real difference in helping to find missing loved ones.

“We always tell people this is a judgement free zone. We don’t care really why they’re missing, we just want to help the family bring their loved one home,” Colon said.

19 News will dedicate stories each day this week to remembering the miracle back in May of 2013, while taking a look at missing cases that are active in Northeast Ohio, and talking to the people who are working 24/7 to bring the missing back home.

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