The biological mother of a 32-year-old Connecticut man allegedly held captive by his stepmother for over two decades has spoken out.
Police say that the man was finally rescued after intentionally setting his home on fire — leading to a dramatic confrontation with first responders and the woman accused of years of neglect and abuse.
Bodycam footage from the February 17, 2025, incident in Waterbury, Connecticut, shows firefighters discovering the severely malnourished man, who weighed just 68 pounds.
His alleged captor, 56-year-old Kimberly Sullivan, stood outside clutching her dog, appearing more concerned for the pet than for her stepson.
Firefighters Rescue Malnourished Victim From ‘House of Horrors’
As firefighters carried the frail victim out of the burning home, Sullivan was recorded saying: “My dog is shaking,” before shouting at the firefighter holding her stepson, “What are you doing?”
The man was rushed to a hospital, where his uncle, Kurt Sullivan, was horrified by his condition.
“I was shocked, he looks like a Holocaust survivor,” he told police, according to court documents, per the New York Post.
The victim told authorities that he deliberately started the fire using hand sanitizer, paper, a stack of games, and a lighter — hoping that it would force someone to help him escape.
“Once the fire got going good, he started to stomp and yell for help,” the police affidavit states. “[He] stated that Sullivan yelled to him asking what he wanted and he told her ‘fire.’”
Sullivan then unlocked the door, allowing him to leave the room, but he collapsed at the top of the stairs. Instead of calling for help, she allegedly told him to wash his face and fled the house.
Court documents also state that Sullivan ordered the victim’s sister and her boyfriend to remove the deadbolts from his bedroom door before authorities arrived. The victim, however, deliberately collapsed and refused to move until firefighters found him.
Years of Alleged Imprisonment and Abuse
Authorities say the victim had been locked in a 9-by-8-foot storage space for up to 22 hours a day for years. He allegedly had to drink from a toilet and eat from the garbage to survive.
His captivity reportedly became even more restrictive after the death of his father, Kregg Sullivan, in January 2024.
According to investigators, Sullivan only allowed him to leave his room to perform chores and limited his food intake to just two sandwiches and small bottles of water per day.
Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo described the situation as “one of the worst acts of inhumanity” he had ever seen.
“The suffering this victim endured for over 20 years is both heartbreaking and unimaginable,” he said.
Supervisory Assistant State's Attorney Don Therkildsen added, per the CT Post: "The facts of this case, quite frankly, the facts are something out of a horror movie. That's without exaggeration."
Biological Mother Speaks Out: “We Are Trying to Come to Grips With This Horror”
The victim’s biological mother, a 52-year-old Meriden resident, said her son “has never been forgotten.”
“We are all trying to come to grips with this horror that my son had to endure,” she told the New York Post in an exclusive interview.
When asked why she had not intervened, she did not provide a direct answer but insisted her son was loved.
“He has family who love him so much,” she said. “He should have never been put through this horror.”
She requested privacy for the family to “start the healing process” and emphasized that her son’s recovery is the most important priority.
School Officials Raised Concerns in 2005
Concerns about the victim’s well-being date back nearly two decades.
In 2005, educators at Barnard Elementary School raised the alarm after noticing that the boy was starving and searching for food in the garbage, according to a former principal.
The school alerted the state to possible serious abuse, but the boy was soon withdrawn from school and reportedly homeschooled.
State officials are now reviewing past interactions with the family, including the 2005 homeschooling assessment, which at the time was considered acceptable.
According to relatives, Sullivan isolated the victim from extended family and pushed away anyone who asked questions.
His uncle, Kurt Sullivan, said he had been unable to see his nephew for nearly 20 years after Sullivan and Kregg restricted family access.
Defense Attorney Calls Allegations “Outlandish”
Following a month-long investigation, Kimberly Sullivan was arrested and charged with first-degree assault, second-degree kidnapping, first-degree unlawful restraint, cruelty to persons, and first-degree reckless endangerment.
Despite the charges, her attorney, Ioannis Kaloidis, strongly denies the allegations.
“The allegations are horrific, but they are simply that: allegations,” Kaloidis told NBC Connecticut. “They’re allegations made by one person that are largely uncorroborated by any independent evidence.”
He further claimed that Sullivan never locked her stepson in a room and that she provided him with food and shelter.
Kaloidis suggested that Kregg Sullivan, who passed away in January 2024, was responsible for how his son was raised.
“She is innocent, and she has every intention of defending this case,” Kaloidis said. “We are confident she will be vindicated.”
Sullivan Released on Bond, Awaiting Trial
Sullivan was released on $300,000 bond less than 24 hours after her arrest. Her lawyer stated that family members helped cover the bail amount.
Under the conditions of her release, she must undergo daily evaluations and is prohibited from contacting the victim.
She is scheduled to appear in Waterbury Superior Court on March 26, 2025, where prosecutors are expected to present further evidence.
As the case unfolds, officials continue to investigate how the victim remained in alleged captivity for so long without intervention.