Tenn. man allegedly kidnapped, locked girlfriend in closet for 2 months inside vacant home

DYERSBURG, Tenn. (TCD) -- A 30-year-old man was arrested following a two-day manhunt for allegedly kidnapping his girlfriend and holding her captive in a locked closet inside an abandoned home.

According to Dyersburg Police, on March 11 at 1:30 p.m., officers responded to a domestic complaint on Schaffer Street after a woman approached someone and said she had just escaped from being kidnapped. Police reportedly located the 40-year-old victim "hiding under a new construction home" and looking extremely thin. She reportedly weighed less than 100 pounds and had cuts on her face.

The victim, who remained unnamed, told police she was in a relationship with Brenton Bell, but it became physically abusive. She said she had been kept in a closet that was "locked by some type of locking device with a cable" and was only allowed to leave the closet for one hour each day. Bell allegedly gave her "limited food," and did not give her access to a bathroom.

Dyersburg Police officers and detectives found the abandoned home on Ayers Street and discovered evidence, including human waste, that matched the victim’s descriptions.

The victim was taken to West Tennessee Healthcare Dyersburg and later released.

Police located and arrested Bell on March 15 at 6:45 p.m. on a charge of aggravated kidnapping.

MORE:

• Woman held captive locked in a closet for weeks - Dyersburg Police Department