12-Year-Old Girl Escapes Capture By Chewing Through Restraints
José Paulino Pascual-Reyes, 37, was charged with capital murder and first-degree kidnapping after authorities found two decomposing bodies inside his mobile home.
A 12-year-old girl who had been held captive in a home in rural Alabama was found walking along a nearby road on Monday, which led the police to the decomposed bodies of her mother and brother inside the residence.
José Paulino Pascual-Reyes, 37, of Dadeville, Ala., was arrested and charged with first-degree kidnapping, capital murder, and the abuse of a corpse, according to the Tallapoosa County Sherriff’s Department.
Pascual-Reyes made an initial appearance in court Wednesday. The judge denied a bond, and he was assigned a public defender.
Monday morning, a driver noticed the girl walking along a road in Dadeville, Ala., and notified police.
Mr. Pascual-Reyes was the mother’s boyfriend, Sheriff Abbett said.
Court documents said the girl had been abducted on July 24, tied to bed posts, assaulted for a week, and given alcohol to keep her in a drugged state.
The girl escaped by chewing through her restraints, breaking her braces in the process, documents say.
“She’s a hero,” he said. “She’s safe and we want to keep her that way.”
The F.B.I. and the Department of Homeland Security, along with local agencies, are helping to investigate.