Ariel Castro Offered Plea Deal: Accused Cleveland Kidnapper Would Not Face Death Penalty, Get Life + 1000 Years

by UInterviewJuly 26, 2013, 12:00 amNews >

Ariel Castro, the Cleveland man accused of holding three women captive for a period stretching over ten years, has been offered a plea deal that takes the death penalty off the table.

Castro’s attorneys had previously stated that their client would not accept a plea deal that included the death penalty. The current deal submitted by the prosecution, which Castro is expected to accept, is life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 1,000 years, reported WKYC. Nothing has been finalized yet, but Castro will appear in court on Friday for the final pretrial hearing.

Castro, 52, is currently facing 977 counts, including kidnapping, rape and aggravated murder. The accused was arrested back in May when it was discovered that three young women – Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight – had been trapped at his house for several years. Castro’s brothers, Pedro Castro and Onil Castro, were initially arrested in association with the crimes but were never charged.

Following Castro’s arrest, a suicide note written in 2004 was allegedly found in his residence, according to CBS News. “I am a sexual predator,” Ariel Castro reportedly wrote in the letter. “I need help.” He went on to write, “They are here against their will because they made a mistake of getting in a car with a total stranger,” according to 19 Action News reporter Scott Taylor.

Berry, who’d been held captive the longest of the three, successfully escaped Castro’s house with her 6-year-old daughter (fathered by Castro) on May 6 with the help of neighborhood hero Charles Ramsey.

Castro’s trial is scheduled for Aug. 5.

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