Latest news with #BibbCounty
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Inside the Alabama Torture Bunker, Where Even Parents Are Accused of Abusing Kids
Seven people have been charged so far in connection with the crime operation, which appears to have begun in 2022 in Brent, about 50 miles southwest of BirminghamNEED TO KNOW At least 10 children in central Alabama were harmed in a harrowing child abuse case involving sex trafficking and torture, authorities said Some of the children's parents and relatives are among the suspects Two women and five men have been arrested with more arrests expected, according to authoritiesAt least 10 children in central Alabama were harmed in a harrowing child abuse case, in which they were sex trafficked — some of them by their own parents or other relatives — according to a local sheriff, who also said that that may have been why the abuse went undetected. Seven people have been charged so far in connection with the crime operation, which appears to have begun in 2022 in Brent, about 50 miles southwest of Birmingham, Bibb County Sheriff Jody Wade said. Most of the victims were between 3 and 10 years old, and one was 15, Wade said. The children are now in the custody of the state and are receiving medical and psychological support. The abuse occurred in a bunker, which was built as a storm shelter, Wade said. He said the suspects charged people to visit the bunker and abuse the children. Officials began investigating in February after state child welfare officials alerted Bibb County authorities to the possibility of sexual abuse occurring at a home near the bunker. Wade described the bunker as a concrete structure partially underground with a mattress and a toilet. 'I'm afraid there's going to be more victims and many more suspects,' Wade said at a recent news conference. Those charged include William McElroy, Dalton Terrell, Andres Trejo-Velazquez, Timothy St. John, Sara Terrell, Ricky Terrell and Rebecca Brewer. All but Ricky and Sara Terrell have been charged with human trafficking, while McElroy, Dalton Terrell, Trejo-Velazquez and St. John are also charged with rape, sodomy and kidnapping. St. John also faces charges of bestiality and aggravated cruelty to animals. Sara Terrell is charged with one count of sexual torture and two counts of sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old. Brewer, the other woman who was arrested, is charged with eight counts each of human trafficking and kidnapping and three counts of sexual torture. The seven are in jail either because they were denied bond at a hearing or were stipulated not to receive one, Bryan Jones, assistant district attorney for the 4th Judicial Circuit of Alabama, tells PEOPLE. Jones says he anticipates Brewer and both Ricky and Sara Terrell will face additional charges once their cases are presented to a grand jury. It was not immediately clear whether any of them had lawyers. "This is by far the worst case that I've ever had to deal with in terms of the the type of abuse, the length of the abuse, and the ages of the victims that were abused," Jones tells PEOPLE. Wade also said it was the worst child abuse case he'd seen in his 33-year career. "Some of the victims, the offenders were their parents and different relatives," Wade said. Related: Bunker of Hell: Men Allegedly Paid to Rape Small Children in Underground Enclosure for More Than a Year The district attorney's office declined to discuss the alleged relationships between the victims and the suspects to protect the identities of the children. According to the sheriff, the children were sometimes tied to a pole or bound to a bed or a chair in the bunker and were sometimes drugged to make them compliant. 'Sometimes, there would be multiple people that would come by and victimize these children on a nightly basis," he said. The operation is believed to have brought in up to $1,000 a night. "It's hard to fathom that you could do this to another human being, but what makes it even worse is they're children and their ages," Jones tells PEOPLE. "You're talking about one child that was still either in or just coming out of diapers. It's just unbelievable that somebody could do this to someone that is so small and so innocent." "It's hard to believe," he adds. Read the original article on People
New York Times
4 days ago
- New York Times
Seven Charged in Child Abuse Ring Run From an Alabama Bunker, Officials Say
In a rural stretch of Bibb County in central Alabama, past pine forests and gravel roads, deputies uncovered what a sheriff called the most disturbing child abuse case he's seen in his 33 years of working in law enforcement. Inside a concrete bunker near a home, at least 10 children were harmed as part of what the Bibb County Sheriff's Office described as a criminal operation involving sex trafficking, torture and the theft of innocence. Most of the victims were between 3 and 10 years old; one was 15, officials said. 'I know God's forgiveness is boundless, but if there was a limit to it, I think we've reached it,' Sheriff Jody Wade said, describing the acts as beyond comprehension and the kind that fracture faith in human nature. At a news conference on Wednesday, Sheriff Wade said seven people, including family members and parents, were charged in connection with the trafficking operation in Brent, Ala., a city of 2,600 people about an hour south of Birmingham, where children were harmed in the bunker's underground structure. The charges include human trafficking, rape, sodomy and sexual torture, Sheriff Wade said. Two women and five men were charged. 'I'm afraid there's going to be more victims and many more suspects,' he said. A photo released by the sheriff's office shows the inside of the bunker: a stained mattress in a corner, a black metal folding chair beside it, a dirty white pedestal fan, and a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. The sheriff said that the victims did not live in the bunker, which was built as a storm shelter, but that it was where the adults held them and allowed others to abuse them. The victims were restrained to a chair and bed, Sheriff Wade said, adding that those children who were old enough to fight back were given something to make them a 'little bit more drowsy and a little bit more compliant.' Sheriff Wade said that the suspects charged people to visit the bunker and abuse the children. The operation sometimes brought in $1,000 a night. Sheriff Wade said the investigation into the ring suggests that the abuse began around 2022. The sheriff's office started its investigation after Alabama child welfare officials alerted it to possible abuse at a home connected to the property where the bunker was found. It was not immediately clear when the authorities began their investigation. The children, now in the custody of the state, are receiving medical, emotional and psychological support. The sheriff said they have been meeting with counselors. 'We can't heal from this,' Sheriff Wade said. 'But you can move on as best you can.' For some of the younger children, memories appear fragmented, with details surfacing slowly. Sheriff Wade said he hoped the trauma the older children faced will fade with time, though he acknowledged it could potentially have a lasting impact. It remained unclear what will be done with the bunker once the investigation concludes. Asked about it during the news conference, Sheriff Wade said he had not yet considered it. 'If I had my way about it, we'd blow it up,' he said.
Washington Post
5 days ago
- Washington Post
Children tortured and abused in sex trafficking ring in Alabama, police say
At least 10 children between the ages of 3 and 15 were held in an underground bunker in central Alabama and sexually exploited, tortured and trafficked, according to the local sheriff's department. Authorities have arrested seven individuals — including the parents and family members of the some of the victims — on several charges ranging from human trafficking, rape, sodomy, sexual torture and bestiality, Bibb County Sheriff Jody Wade said at a news conference Wednesday.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
Inside the room where adults are accused of torturing kids with shock collars and forcing them into sex
Appalling photos have revealed the Alabama storm shelter where at least 10 children, some as young as 3 years old, were held captive and sexually tortured for years as part of a sex-trafficking ring organized by some of their own relatives. Bibb County Sheriff Jody Wade said during a press conference Wednesday that 10 victims have been identified, but warned that both the number of victims and arrests would likely increase. "I've been in law enforcement for 33 years, and this is absolutely the most horrible thing I've ever seen when it comes to the victimization of children,' Wade said. 'I know God's forgiveness is boundless, but if there was a limit to it, I think we've reached it.' Seven suspects, including two mothers and several other relatives of the victims, have been arrested so far for their role in the alleged ring, authorities said. William Chase EcElroy, 21, Dalton Terrell, 21, Andres Velazquez-Trejo, 29, Timothy St. John, 23, Ricky Terrell, 44, Sara Louise Terrell, 41, and Rebecca Brewer, 29, all face an array of charges, ranging from rape and sodomy to kidnapping and human trafficking. A shocking photo shared by authorities revealed the squalid conditions inside the concrete bunker where the horrifying abuse transpired for years, with authorities saying they believe it began around 2022. Inside the cold, concrete shelter was little furniture, consisting of just an old, dingy bed, several chairs and other small pieces of furniture. Throughout the abuse, the children would allegedly be tied up, often to the limited pieces of furniture, and forced to perform sexual acts, Bibb County Assistant District Attorney Bryan Jones said. The children were also allegedly drugged by Velazquez-Trejo, who put some kind of white powder into their drinks that would make them drowsy, authorities said. 'It's hard to hear their stories and it's hard to see pictures of this bunker where, according to some of the witnesses, they were drugged,' Jones said. 'As bad as it sounds with (Velazques-Trejo) drugging them, it may be a blessing in disguise because they don't remember a lot of things,' Jones said. 'I'm hopeful that they won't have near the trauma they would have had if they had not been drugged.' One of the mothers reportedly involved in the abuse, Sara Louise Terrell, would allegedly put animal shock collars on the victims, which the suspects would also use on the children's genitals, according to The New York Post. The investigation into the abuse began earlier this year on Feb. 4, when authorities were called to the shelter and found two of the victims performing sexual acts on each other, Jones said. The victims told authorities they were performing what McElroy had done to them or taught them to do, Jones said. Authorities allege the children, who were between the ages of 3 and 16, were forced to endure vaginal intercourse, anal intercourse and oral sex. Records obtained by also showed that one of the suspects allegedly 'sold' children 'to various clientele for sexual pleasure.' Each suspect reportedly had a specific role in the alleged ring. Authorities believe their investigation will yield more victims and even more suspects. Jones said there are allegations of up to another 12 men who may have paid to have sex with the children. 'We have no way of identifying these people unless somebody in the community comes forward and says this person told us they did this,' Jones said. 'The children wouldn't know who they are,' he said, referring to the victims being drugged. The victims included Sara Louise Terrell's children and Velazquez-Trejo and Brewer's children, authorities said. It was not immediately clear how many children from each suspect was involved in the abuse. Authorities said all three Terrells charged are related to each other, though it was not immediately clear how. Wade said that 'there's no telling' how many additional victims they may find, noting it seemed as though what they'd uncovered was 'just the tip of the iceberg.' Bibb County officials are investigating alongside the Department of Homeland Security. Authorities are also probing the suspects' potential affiliations with the Mexican gang Seranos, which largely makes money through child sex trafficking. The victims are all in the custody of the Alabama Department of Human Resources. The suspects, who all lived in mobile homes within a mile of each other in the small town of Brent, will be arraigned in August. The investigation is ongoing.
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Yahoo
Bunker of Hell: Men Allegedly Paid to Rape Small Children in Underground Enclosure for More Than a Year
Three Alabama men have been arrested for allegedly operating what local authorities described as an 'abhorrent' and 'horrific' child sex abuse ring out of an underground bunker near their homes in Brent, Ala. The Bibb County Sheriff's Office announced this past weekend that William Chase McElroy, Dalton Terrell, and Andres Velazquez-Trejo have all been arrested and charged in connection with the child sex abuse case. Local authorities began investigating the case back in February, the Bibb County Sheriff's Office said in a social media post announcing the men's arrest on Saturday. The Bibb County Sheriff's Office said McElroy, 21, has been charged with four counts of rape, six counts of human trafficking, six counts of sodomy, and four counts of kidnapping. Terrell, also 21, was charged with six counts of rape, 12 counts of sodomy, and five counts of human trafficking. Meanwhile, Velazquez-Trejo, 29, was charged with six counts of human trafficking. 'Sheriff Wade reiterates that such abhorrent behavior will not be tolerated in Bibb County and that offenders will face prosecution to the fullest extent of the law,' the sheriff's office said in a statement. 'As this is an ongoing case, details are currently limited.' Some details have emerged from local reports, however. reported over the weekend that the three men allegedly carried out their child sex abuse operation for more than a year, between January 2024 and April 2025. The men's alleged victims ranged from 3-to-10 years old, the outlet reported, citing charging documents. McElroy and Terrell allegedly admitted to sexually abusing the children, according to while Velazquez-Trejo is accused of selling nude images of the victims to other suspects before also selling the children themselves. According to authorities haven't yet determined how the three men knew each other, but noted they all live in trailers within a mile of one another. The children were allegedly drugged and brought to the bunker, according to a report by WBRC, which also described the bunker as a local storm shelter. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Robert Turner Jr., the District Attorney for the 4th Circuit of Alabama, said in a statement on Tuesday that there are 'more anticipated arrests to follow' beyond the three men already indicted. 'This case represents one of the most troubling and complex investigations our office has undertaken, these allegations are sadistic and sickening,' Turner Jr. said. Assistant District Attorney Bryan Jones said "it's just unimaginable that someone could do this to a child,' according to WBRC. 'Children are defenseless, and they depend on adults to take care of them and protect them," Jones added. "And then when adults do these types of things to them, it's just really horrific.' Neighbors and other community members have since taken to social media to call for justice. Misty Colburn, a neighbor who lived near one of the suspects, told WVTM that she believes the men 'deserve way worse' than prison in her mind. 'I couldn't imagine the amount of pain the children went through and the amount of pain that they should go through,' the neighbor said. 'I don't think there's a way to even do it.' Read the original article on People
