The father and stepmother of a Michigan boy who was found locked in his basement after an 11-day disappearance have been charged with torture and child abuse.
Charlie Bothuell was 12-years old when he was reported missing on June 14, 2014 by his father Charles Bothuell IV. After an 11-day search, the boy was found June 25 when and FBI agent and Michigan state sergeant were searching the family’s condominium complex, according to MyFoxDetroit.com.
Police said the boy was very think and had marks on his upper body when they found him.
Wayne County, Mich. Prosecutors said in a press release that Charles Bothuell and his wife Monique Dillard-Bothuell, “systematically, physically abused the boy and forced him to live in the baseman and not socialize with others, intentionally deprived him of food and forced him to engage in an extreme and unreasonable exercise regime.”
Court records say that the father and stepmother placed him in the basement and told him “not to come out, no matter what he hears.” The boy would sometimes sneak upstairs to get food.
The couple’s attorney called the charges “ludicrous.”
The couple was arrested early Friday morning and arraigned later that say, police said.
Charlie and his wife were also involved in a parental rights case involving two of their own children, who were removed from their home and placed with family.
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