Cleveland:
The man charged with kidnapping and raping three women over a decade in his Cleveland home faced arraignment on an expanded, 977-count indictment.
The newest charges returned Friday by a grand jury against Ariel Castro expanded on a 329-count indictment filed earlier and which covered only part of the timeframe of the alleged crimes.
Castro, 53, has been jailed since his arrest May 6 shortly after the women escaped to freedom.
Castro has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder related to one act, saying he purposely caused the unlawful termination of the pregnancy of one of the women.
The new, 576-page indictment also charges him with 512 counts of kidnapping, 446 counts of rape, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, six counts of felonious assault, three counts of child endangerment and one count of possessing criminal tools.
Castro was to be arraigned on Wednesday.
The three women appeared in a YouTube video last week to thank people who donated to a fund created to benefit them. They otherwise have sought to stay out of sight and have appealed for privacy.
Castro is scheduled for trial Aug. 5, a date that could be delayed if the defense requests more preparation time.
Castro pleaded not guilty to the earlier indictment of 329 counts. His legal team has hinted Castro would plead guilty if the death penalty was off the table.
Castro is accused of repeatedly restraining the women, sometimes chaining them to a pole in a basement, to a bedroom heater or inside a van. The charges say one of the women tried to escape and he assaulted her with a vacuum cord around her neck.
Amanda Berry, Gina Dejesus and Michelle Knight disappeared separately between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old. Each said they had accepted a ride from Castro, who remained friends with Dejesus' family and even attended vigils over the years marking her disappearance.
Berry has a 6-year-old daughter fathered by Castro, authorities said.
Castro has been held on $8 million bail. Cuyahoga County jail logs show him spending most of his time sleeping, lying on his bunk, watching TV and occasionally drawing or exercising.
The newest charges returned Friday by a grand jury against Ariel Castro expanded on a 329-count indictment filed earlier and which covered only part of the timeframe of the alleged crimes.
Castro, 53, has been jailed since his arrest May 6 shortly after the women escaped to freedom.
Castro has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder related to one act, saying he purposely caused the unlawful termination of the pregnancy of one of the women.
The new, 576-page indictment also charges him with 512 counts of kidnapping, 446 counts of rape, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, six counts of felonious assault, three counts of child endangerment and one count of possessing criminal tools.
Castro was to be arraigned on Wednesday.
The three women appeared in a YouTube video last week to thank people who donated to a fund created to benefit them. They otherwise have sought to stay out of sight and have appealed for privacy.
Castro is scheduled for trial Aug. 5, a date that could be delayed if the defense requests more preparation time.
Castro pleaded not guilty to the earlier indictment of 329 counts. His legal team has hinted Castro would plead guilty if the death penalty was off the table.
Castro is accused of repeatedly restraining the women, sometimes chaining them to a pole in a basement, to a bedroom heater or inside a van. The charges say one of the women tried to escape and he assaulted her with a vacuum cord around her neck.
Amanda Berry, Gina Dejesus and Michelle Knight disappeared separately between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old. Each said they had accepted a ride from Castro, who remained friends with Dejesus' family and even attended vigils over the years marking her disappearance.
Berry has a 6-year-old daughter fathered by Castro, authorities said.
Castro has been held on $8 million bail. Cuyahoga County jail logs show him spending most of his time sleeping, lying on his bunk, watching TV and occasionally drawing or exercising.
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