That detail points to the uncomfortable question at the centre of the case: how a person can be held in a guarded building for two years without anyone raising an alarm.
A woman in Fargo, North Dakota, was rescued from an apartment where, according to police, she had been chained to a bed for two years and subjected to beatings and sexual assault by her ex-husband and his girlfriend. The case, reported by the Times of India citing court documents and local outlets including Valley News Live and Inforum, became public only after a maintenance worker heard her cries for help on 3 November.
Officers who responded found her restrained by a heavy chain and padlock around her right ankle, the chain secured to the bedframe. The investigative report described restraints bolted to the headboard and footboard, covered with foam pool noodles and locked with Master Lock padlocks. The bedroom reportedly had a security camera pointed at the bed, and its windows were covered with aluminium foil. The woman told investigators she was given food twice a day and forced to use a bucket beside the bed. Bruising was found on her arms, legs and face, and she said she had been punched, leaving a scar on her forehead.
Her ex-husband, 40-year-old Arturo Calzada-Becerril, and his girlfriend, 41-year-old Erendira Amoles, have been charged with kidnapping along with additional counts including domestic violence and assault. Both appeared in court on Friday, 6 November, and a judge set bail at $500,000 each. Prosecutors said both could face deportation and that further charges may follow. According to the reports, Calzada-Becerril told police he kept the woman restrained so that she did not run away, claiming she was addicted to drugs. Prosecutors alleged the pair held her captive to obtain immigration status; the victim is an American citizen, according to Valley News Live.
The woman said she was brought to Fargo from Mexico in 2024 and was not allowed to leave the apartment. She was interviewed with the help of a translation app. Amoles was usually responsible for handling the victim and unlocking her from the bedframe, court documents state, and she returned to the apartment with her eight-year-old daughter shortly after authorities discovered the woman.
The reaction of neighbours has become part of the story. Residents told Valley News Live they were stunned, noting that security personnel patrolled the complex from roughly 6 to 11 p.m. each night. One longtime tenant said she had noticed the foil on the windows for years without knowing why. That detail points to the uncomfortable question at the centre of the case: how a person can be held in a guarded building for two years without anyone raising an alarm. The reports do not establish whether any complaint was ever made, or how the apartment was rented and by whom. Fargo police are working with the Cass County State's Attorney's Office as the case proceeds. The charges are allegations, and the defendants have yet to answer them in court.
