An East Brandywine woman was locked bound and gagged for four days in this storage closet in her home, after being the victim of a home invasion last month.
A 17-year-old has been charged in the home invasion robbery of an East Brandywine woman, who was left bound in a closet in her home for four days.
The youth, not identified by authorities because of his age, was a resident at Devereux Brandywine, a behavioral health facility, from which he apparently escaped. The youth faces charges of attempted homicide, robbery, burglary, aggravated assault, strangulation, and related charges.
Authorities said the victim, a 72-year-old woman who was not identified, discovered her Creek Road home had been burglarized on Feb. 22 — but then left for work. When she returned later that day, around 7:30 p.m., authorities said that she discovered the youth in her home. He grabbed her and allegedly told her “you’ll be with Jesus, soon.”
The attacker then covered the victim’s head with a shopping bag, secured around her neck with duct tape. Her arms were tied in back of her with zip ties, duct tape, and cloth. Her knees and ankles were bound together with duct tape.
Before leaving, the attacker tossed the bound victim into a small, unlit storage area underneath a set of stairs in the house. The victim was left tied up in the room, without food or water or light, for four days, from the night of Feb. 22 until the morning of the 26th.
She was discovered by relatives concerned about her lack of contact and taken to Paoli Hospital, suffering from dehydration. She is expected to make a full recovery.
On her discovery, township police and the Chester County Detectives began an immediate investigation.
“This juvenile engaged in a brutal attack on the victim, then showed a callous disregard for her life,” Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan said. “The charged juvenile is lucky that the victim did not die. If the victim had not been found by her family, the defendant would be facing murder charges.“
The youth allegedly took the victim’s credit cards and her car, her cell phone and other items, authorities said. The credit cards were traced to use in Maryland — and surveillance video reportedly showed the youth using the cards and emerging from the victim’s car.
Investigators worked with staff at Deveraux — the youth returned there two days after his apparent escape and then was transferred to another facility. After executing a search warrant, police said they found the clothes that the youth was wearing when he allegedly used the victim’s car and credit card. The police also recovered the victim’s stolen phone at Devereux.
The youth was arrested March 1.
Local police praised county officials and other law enforcement agencies for their quick work and assistance on the case.
“Thank you to the District Attorney’s Office and their Detectives, the Baltimore City Police Department, and to the many police agencies and medical and other support teams that assisted us at the scene and with the investigation,” East Brandywine Township Police Chief Mark Kocsi said. “A special thank you to the victim and her family for their strength and perseverance. Our prayers are with them for a full recovery.”
