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Five suspects were arrested after a half-naked woman was found malnourished and chained in the backyard of a Texas home, where she was tortured by five of her “friends” who didn’t “like her anymore,” authorities said. Police responded to a home south of Austin on October 30 at around 9:00 a.m., after a 911 call was made reporting “a woman in distress who appeared to be restrained and calling for help,” officials said. Law enforcement arrived at the scene on Bitter Creek Drive, where they found a woman naked from the waist down and handcuffed to metal exercise equipment outside the home, unable to free herself, according to an affidavit obtained by the Austin American-Statesman. “The woman told officers she had been held at the residence for several months and was not allowed to leave,” police said, adding that officers were forced to cut through heavy metal links in order to release the victim, who had “visible injuries consistent with prolonged restraint.” Police called the Austin Fire Department for assistance, as well as the Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services (ATCEMS), which then transported the victim to a local hospital, authorities added. At the hospital, doctors recorded injuries consistent with prolonged restraint and repeated pellet gun wounds, the affidavit said, adding that police also found a BB pellet in the woman’s clothing, while hospital scans revealed another had been lodged in her right eye. Five people were arrested in connection to the incident, with police noting that “multiple adults began exiting the residence” as they worked to free the victim from the restraints. “Those individuals were detained while officers secured the scene to ensure there were no additional victims or potential threats inside,” authorities said. Law enforcement said they arrested 51-year-old Michelle Garcia, 21-year-old Crystal Garcia, 32-year-old Mache Carney, 30-year-old Juan Pablo Castro, and 21-year-old Maynard Lefevers. “Preliminary information gathered at the scene, including interviews and evidence, indicates that multiple adults living at the residence were involved in restraining and assaulting the victim over a period of time,” officials said. All five suspects have been charged with Aggravated Kidnapping, Aggravated Assault, Injury to Elderly or Disabled, and Unlawful Restraint. Police also found two young children at the home, one of whom — a 4-year-old boy identified as Castro’s son — told investigators that his father shot the victim whenever she was “bad,” and that Carney, his mother, usually stood by and watched. The young boy also reportedly mentioned that the woman had been sleeping outside. Both of the children have since been placed with Child Protective Services. The woman told authorities that she had been friends with Michelle Garcia, but “one day they decided they didn’t like her anymore and no longer allowed her to leave,” the affidavit said. The victim added that the night before she was discovered by police, her pants had slipped down and “she got in trouble.” As punishment, several of the suspects allegedly shot the woman repeatedly with a BB gun before handcuffing her to exercise equipment in the backyard and leaving her overnight — where temperatures dropped to the 40s — without pants or food. The suspects, meanwhile, told police they had known the woman for years, and that she suffered from mental health issues. “I [fucking] hate her,” Castro told detectives when asked why he shot the victim, according to the affidavit, which added that the 30-year-old admitted he bought the BB gun specifically “to shoot her” because he did not want to touch her. Castro also allegedly told authorities that he would come home from work, grab the BB gun from his closet, and “chase her around the yard” as he fired pellets. Michelle Garcia reportedly told police they limited the victim to one meal per day because the woman had gotten “chunky.” Investigators, however, noted that she appeared malnourished when they found her. Police said the woman sustained severe injuries, citing open wounds, swollen wrists, loss of flesh from her hands and feet, scarring all over her body from BB pellets, and a battered face. All five suspects are currently being held at the Travis County jail on $305,000 bail. Carney is due to appear in court on November 18, while Michelle Garcia’s next court date is scheduled for November 21. Crystal Garcia, Castro, and Lefevers are set to appear on December 15. Alana Mastrangelo is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
