VIDEO: Nelly brings out Amanda Berry at RoverFest 2013

WATCH VIDEO 

What you Don't know about Cleveland Kidnapper Ariel Castro

Who is the suspect?

 

Ariel Castro

Age: 52

Occupation: Unemployed. Fired as school bus driver in November.

Arrested by police: May 6, 2013

Castro has owned the house at 2207 Seymour Ave., where the women were found, since 1992. He has nine brothers and sisters, and his deceased father owned a car lot off West 25th Street. He is the member of a large extended family that settled in Cleveland just after World War II, emigrating from Puerto Rico. The family has widespread business ties. Castro was a longtime bus driver for Cleveland Metropolitan School District, but was fired in November. Also, Castro was a part-time bass player who was known among the Cleveland music scene. The Castro family also had several connections to the family of victim Gina DeJesus, and DeJesus family members said they believe Castro was involved in the search for Gina when she disappeared in 2004. Castro was described by those that knew him as smart and funny, but also quiet and private, and he had a love for classic cars. However, court records and police reports indicate Castro was a man who struggled to control his temper. He was accused of attacking his former wife in 2005. Neighbors and others who knew Castro he was guarded about who could come in his home, and some said he only entered and exited the house through the back door. Police visited Castro's home twice, in 2000 and 2004, for unrelated incidents. Castro and his brother, Onil Castro, 50, were arrested at a McDonald's on West 33rd Street on Monday, May 6, 2013. Another brother, Pedro Castro, 54, was arrested at the Hyde Avenue home of the brothers' mother, Lillian Rodriguez. Onil, 50, and Pedro, 54, were not charged in connection with the abductions.

Ariel Castro bond set at $8 million on kidnapping and rape chargesAriel Castro is arraigned in Cleveland Municipal Court on kidnapping and rape charges involving Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight. The three women and one child escaped Castro's Seymour Avenue home Monday after being held captive for a decade or more. Judge Lauren C. Moore set bond at $8 million.

On Wednesday, May 8, 2013, Ariel Castro was charged with four counts of kidnapping and three counts of rape. He wasarraigned the following morning in Cleveland Municipal Court and was held on $8 million bond. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty said he would pursue aggravated murder charges against Castro because of "terminated pregnancies" during the women's captivity. Asearch of a nationwide DNA database did not connect Castro to any other crimes. On May 15, the Associated Press reported that Castro intended to plead not guilty to the charges. Onil and Pedro Castro did have warrants on unrelated misdemeanor charges. Pedro was released on May 8 after pleading no contest to an open container charge filed in July 2011. He was fined $100. Onil was released on May 8 after Judge Lauren Moore dismissed charges of drug abuse and having an open container that were filed in November 2001. The brothers later told CNN they had nothing to do with what reportedly went on in Ariel Castro's home, and they would have reported him to police if they had known. Onil said he hopes Ariel "rots in that jail."

On Friday, June 7, a Cuyahoga County grand jury issued a 329-count indictment against Ariel Castro. Two counts of the indictment charge Castro with aggravated murder for "purposely and with prior calculation and design causing the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy." The indictments covered only the period from August of 2002, when the first of the three women discovered in his Seymour Avenue house disappeared, until February of 2007. Castro also was indicted on 139 counts of rape, 177 counts of kidnapping, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, three counts of felonious assault and one count of possession of criminal tools.

On Wednesday, June 12, Ariel Castro pleaded not guilty to 329 charges in connection with the abductions and imprisonment of Berry, DeJesus and Knight. Castro did not speak and kept his head down during his appearance in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, and his lawyers entered his plea for him. One of his lawyers also indicated Castro would be willing to plead guilty to some of the charges if it meant he could avoid the death penalty. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty has said he will consider the death penalty in the case. The case was assigned to Judge Michael Russo. It was also revealed that Castro is being held in isolation in the Cuyahoga County Jail.

On Wednesday, June 19, Castro again appeared in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court for a pretrial hearing. Castro said little, answering "yes" and "no" to a few questions from Judge Russo and keeping his head down the entire time. Castro's attorneys, Jaye Schlachet and Craig Weintraub, concede that the evidence for some of the 329 charges against him is overwhelming. They have said Castro is willing to plead guilty to some of the charges to spare his victims from having to testify at trial. "There are definitely charges in this case we cannot dispute," Schlachet told reporters after the hearing. The thrust of his and Weintraub's work will be to prevent Castro from someday walking into the state's death chamber.

Who are the victims? More about Amanda, Gina, and Michelle.

Who are the victims?

View full sizeMichelle Knight in a 1999 family photo prior to her disappearance in 2002.

Michelle Knight

Abducted: Aug. 23, 2002

Age when abducted: 21

Age when rescued: 32

Knight was the first of the three victims to be abducted. She was last seen at a cousin's house near West 106th Street and Lorain Avenue in Cleveland. Her disappearance did not receive much publicity. Knight's grandmother, Deborah Knight, said in an interview that, based on the recommendation of police and social workers, family members had concluded that Michelle likely left on her own because she was angry that her son was removed from her custody. A short police report on disappearance said Michelle had a mental condition and frequently was confused by her surroundings. Knight's name was removed from an FBI database on missing persons by Cleveland police 15 months after her disappearance. Michelle's mother, Barbara Knight, who now lives in Florida, said she and Michelle were close, and she never believed her daughter would disappear without a trace. Barbara Knight put up fliers throughout her West Side neighborhood while living in Cleveland, and said she continued to search on her own after moving to Florida.

View full sizeAmanda Berry, shown before her abduction.AP 

Amanda Berry

Abducted: April 21, 2003

Age when abducted: 17

Age when rescued: 27

Berry disappeared while returning to her home on West 111th Street from her job at Burger King at West 110th Street and Lorain Avenue. She called her sister and told her she had a ride. At first police considered Amanda a runaway. But then the FBI began to investigate the case as a kidnapping. In November 2003, police said someone used Amanda’s cell phone a week after she disappeared to contact Miller and claim her daughter would be fine and would return in a few days. Berry's disappearance received extensive media coverage because of the tenacious efforts of her mother, Louwana Miller. Miller frequently went to local media, held vigils, and appeared on TV shows such as "America's Most Wanted" to keep her daughter's name in the news. Miller was disheartened in 2004 when she was told by a psychic on a TV showthat her daughter was dead. Miller died in 2006.

View full sizeGina DeJesus disappeared in 2004 when she was 14.AP 

Gina DeJesus

Abducted: April 2, 2004

Age when abducted: 14

Age when rescued: 23

DeJesus was a seventh-grader in special education classes at Wilbur Wright Middle School on April 2, 2004, when she decided to walk home. Her family quickly realized something was wrong when she didn't arrive home at her usual time. She was reported missing that same day, and the FBI became involved just two days later. Gina was last seen at the corner of West 105th Street and Lorain Avenue by childhood friend Arlene Castro, who is the daughter of suspected kidnapper Ariel Castro. It was later learned that there are several connections between the DeJesus and Castro families. Gina's family often held vigils for her, with the most recent on April 2, 2013, the ninth anniversary of her disappearance.

Prosecutor Adds 648 More Charges Against Alleged Cleveland Kidnapper Ariel Castro

Former Cleveland school bus driver Ariel Castro now faces 977 criminal charges stemming from the abduction and imprisonment of three women, after 648 charges were added on Friday, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty said.

The grand jury's indictment spans from August 2002, when Castro was accused of abducting the first of the women, through May of this year when the women and a 6-year-old girl escaped his Cleveland home.

"Today's indictment moves us closer to resolution of this gruesome case," McGinty said in a statement.

Castro, who turned 53 on Wednesday in jail, was indicted in June on 329 charges involving the first 4-1/2 years of captivity for the women, who were freed from his house on May 6 along with the girl. DNA evidence later confirmed the girl was fathered by Castro.

Gina DeJesus, 23, Michelle Knight, 32, and Amanda Berry, 27, had been missing for around a decade.

Castro faces two counts of aggravated murder for allegedly forcing one of the women to miscarry. Aggravated murder charges qualify the case for the death penalty, but the prosecutor's office has not yet decided whether to seek that punishment.

Castro is also charged with 512 counts of kidnapping, 446 counts of rape, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, six counts of felony assault, three counts of child endangerment and one count of possessing tools such as a handgun to use in a crime.

He will be arraigned July 17 on the new indictment before Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Russo.

Trial is scheduled to begin on August 5.

(Reporting by Kim Palmer; Writing by Greg McCune; Editing by Gary Hill and Richard Chang)

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/prosecutor-adds-648-more-charges-against-alleged-cleveland-kidnapper-ariel-castro-2013-7#ixzz2YrvmOPla

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/prosecutor-adds-648-more-charges-against-alleged-cleveland-kidnapper-ariel-castro-2013-7#ixzz2Yrvh98fF

Michelle Knight Update (Family VIDEO) *Disturbing*

Her family member never knew she was missing initially and can't recall exactly what relation she is to Michelle Knight. 

Tomorrow, when you eat at any Northeast Ohio Bob Evans restaurant and present this flyer at checkout, 15% of your bill will go to the Cleveland Courage Fund.

Tomorrow, when you eat at any Northeast Ohio Bob Evans restaurant and present this flyer at checkout, 15% of your bill will go to the Cleveland Courage Fund. the fundraiser works for both dine in and carry out orders.

DETAILS: http://on.wkyc.com/1aZpaWt

SHARE this to help Amanda, Gina and Michelle on their road to recovery.

(VIDEO) Gina DeJesus Mother Knew Suspect Ariel Castro for Years and they talked about Gina

Nancy Ruiz says Ariel Castro would often ask how she's holding up without her daughter.