Leo Gillick
A South Carolina man has been arrested after it was discovered he had been allegedly keeping 4 people in his basement for more than ten years.
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When one of the women allegedly kept in 35-year-old Donnie Ray Birchfield Jr.’s basement died, the game was up. It was immediately clear to medical staff that the woman had been heavily abused. An investigation was made, and three other people were found in captivity.
Imprisoned: Birchfield allegedly had been keeping four people in his basement at his home in Lancaster. The police discovered that a married man and woman, and two other women, had been held captive. The married couple was considered vulnerable, and he was in a relationship with two women.
- According to the report, the South Carolina man allegedly used to beat the 4 people. He would also control when they could leave the basement, eat, and use the toilet. The bodily damage and malnutrition alerted medical staff to the possibility of abuse at his home.
Dead Giveaway
When the body of the wife turned up at the hospital, they immediately noticed she had undergone abuse. She had also been dead for a day before. The investigation found the three others in his basement. Birchfield was the designated caregiver for the vulnerable couple. However, the two other women believed they were in a relationship with him.
- One of the women had been trapped in his basement for over 10 years, having been there since 2015. The second woman had been there since September of 2024.
Long List of Charges: As a result, the man is facing multiple charges for keeping people imprisoned in his basement. Besides the abuse and trapping, he also used their various bank accounts as his own. It transpired that he had spent more than $2,000 of their money in Walmart since 20021. In the past 10 months, he had used the couple’s credit card to pay off $12,000 of his own debt.
- He has been charged with abuse of a vulnerable adult, four counts of false imprisonment, and domestic violence. He is also facing fraud and exploitation charges. His bail has been set at $150,000.
