Kidnapped Amanda Berry's call to 911 operator – video
'I'm here. I'm free now,' says Cleveland kidnap victim but emergency dispatcher is slow to react
POLICE have released a recording of the frantic 911 call made by Amanda Berry when she escaped after 10 years' captivity in Cleveland, Ohio yesterday. Berry, now 27, Gina DeJesus, 23, and Michelle Knight, 30, were rescued after disappearing separately around a decade ago. Berry made the call after a neighbour in Seymour Avenue heard her cries and kicked in the front door of the house owned by Ariel Castro. Using the neighbour's phone, Berry can be heard telling the operator: "I've been kidnapped and I've been missing for 10 years and I'm here. I'm free now." She tells the dispatcher that Castro is "out of the house" and repeats "I'm Amanda Berry", apparently well aware that her long disappearance had been reported by local media. The 911 operator has come under fire for the lack of urgency in his handling of the call. He is heard saying: "We will get someone there as soon as we get a car open." Berry replies: "No, I need them now before he gets back."
Joecephus tweeted: "The more I listen, the more upset I get with the ineptness of the dispatcher."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Olive oil: alternatives for the 'liquid gold'
The Week Recommends As the price of this store cupboard staple has rocketed, we look at ways to save and other oils to use for cooking
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Scotland Yard, Gaza and the politics of policing protests
Talking Point Met Police accused of 'two-tier policing' by former home secretary as new footage emerges of latest flashpoint
By The Week UK Published
-
'Cure for Trump amnesia might be his NY trial'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Cleveland kidnap victims thank supporters - video
In Depth Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight thank public for support after going to 'hell and back'
By The Week Staff Published
-
Ariel Castro is 'not monster' and will plead innocent
Speed Read Man accused of imprisoning three women in Ohio house is not guilty of kidnap and rape, says lawyer
By The Week Staff Published
-
Ariel Castro 'house of horrors': will it be demolished?
In Depth Six notorious homes destroyed to keep ghouls away: will 2207 Seymour Ave, Cleveland, Ohio join them?
By The Week Staff Published
-
Listed: Ariel Castro's 'single family home' with garage
In Depth Cleveland kidnap suspect's home is valued at $77,000 – twice its worth a year ago
By The Week Staff Published
-
Ariel Castro's fate: electric chair or an endless prison term?
In Depth Phillip Garrido's prison term was 431 years – and there was only one victim, Jaycee Lee Dugard, in his case
By The Week Staff Published
-
Raped, bound, chained: 10-year ordeal imposed by Ariel Castro
In Depth Ariel Castro faces court alone – his brothers played no part in the horrors at 2207 Seymour Avenue
By The Week Staff Published
-
Were Cleveland women raped after they were kidnapped?
In Depth Reports emerge of multiple pregnancies at house on Seymour Avenue; Castro beat his wife after divorce
By The Week Staff Published
-
Cleveland kidnapping: why did it take a decade to find them?
In Depth Questions raised by discovery of three young women kept hostage inside a house in Ohio for ten years
By The Week Staff Last updated