{"id":14210,"date":"2022-04-21T17:27:28","date_gmt":"2022-04-21T15:27:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1630234"},"modified":"2022-04-21T17:43:37","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T15:43:37","slug":"is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Cleveland Abduction based on a true story?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Patrick Cremona\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 21 April 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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2015 crime thriller\u00a0Cleveland Abduction<\/a> has been causing quite a stir since it was added to US Netflix, with viewers across the Atlantic having been captivated \u2013 and rather horrified \u2013 by the gritty kidnapping drama.<\/p>\n

Boasting a cast that includes Taryn Manning, Raymond Cruz and Pam Grier, it tells the story of a 21-year-old single mother who \u2013 along with two other women \u2013 is abducted by a deeply sinister man and held captive in his basement.<\/p>\n

The film actually started its life as a made-for-TV project on the Lifetime Channel, but the renewed interest since its Netflix bow has led many to ask questions about whether the events depicted are based on a true story.<\/p>\n

Read on for everything you need to know.<\/p>

Is Cleveland Abduction based on a true story?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Yes, the film is based on the real kidnappings committed by Ariel Castro in the Tremont neighbourhood of Cleveland between 2002 and 2004.<\/p>\n

The real names of Castro\u2019s victims \u2013 Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus \u2013 are all used, with the film having been adapted from Knight\u2019s own memoir, Finding Me: A Decade of Darkness, a Life Reclaimed<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As is told in the memoir, Knight \u2013 then aged 21 \u2013 was taken captive by Castro in 2002, with 16-year-old Berry and 14-year-old DeJesus also kidnapped in the following two years.<\/p>\n

Each of them was imprisoned in Castro\u2019s basement until May 2013, when Berry was able to escape along with her 6-year-old daughter (a paternity test later confirmed that Castro was the father) after she managed to make contact with one of Castro\u2019s neighbours.<\/p>\n

The police then rescued the other two victims and apprehended Castro, who was later sentenced to life imprisonment plus 1,000 years in prison without the possibility of parole.<\/p>\n

During the case, details of the horrendous abuse the trio had faced came to light \u2013 with records showing that all three women had been regularly raped by Castro and kept in locked rooms where plastic toilets would be \u201cemptied infrequently\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"""\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Michelle Knight addresses the court while Ariel Castro listens in the background in 2013 in Cleveland, Ohio.<\/span><\/figcaption> Getty<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

According to the sentencing memorandum filed by the prosecutor on the case, Castro used \u201ca program of prolonged physical, sexual, and psychological violence\u201d to ensure that the women remained \u201cin a state of powerlessness\u201d.<\/p>\n

The memorandum adds that all three women \u201cspoke of forced sexual conducted, of being locked in a dark room, of anticipating the next session of abuse, of the dreams of someday escaping and being reunited with family, of being chained to a wall, of being held like a prisoner of war, of missing the lives they once enjoyed, of emotional abuse, of his threats to kill, of being treated like an animal, or continuous abuse, and of desiring freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n

Castro pleaded guilty to 937 criminal counts of rape, kidnapping and\u00a0aggravated murder (or intentional induction of miscarriages) on 26th July\u00a0 2013, as part of a plea deal that would see him avoid a death sentence.<\/p>\n

He was found dead in his cell just one month into his sentence, ruled to have died by\u00a0suicide after hanging himself with bedsheets.<\/p>\n

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Visit our<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>Film<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>hub for more news, interviews and features, or find something to watch now with our<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>TV Guide<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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By Patrick Cremona Published: Thursday, 21 April 2022 at 12:00 am 2015 crime thriller\u00a0Cleveland Abduction has been causing quite a stir since it was added to US Netflix, with viewers across the Atlantic having been captivated \u2013 and rather horrified \u2013 by the gritty kidnapping drama. Boasting a cast that includes Taryn Manning, Raymond Cruz […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":14211,"template":"","categories":[6],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story.png",1486,1034,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story-300x209.png",300,209,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story-768x534.png",768,534,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story-1024x713.png",800,557,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story.png",1486,1034,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/04\/is-cleveland-abduction-based-on-a-true-story.png",1486,1034,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Patrick Cremona Published: Thursday, 21 April 2022 at 12:00 am 2015 crime thriller\u00a0Cleveland Abduction has been causing quite a stir since it was added to US Netflix, with viewers across the Atlantic having been captivated \u2013 and rather horrified \u2013 by the gritty kidnapping drama. Boasting a cast that includes Taryn Manning, Raymond Cruz…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/14210"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14211"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14210"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}