[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]

An absolutely horrifying story out of Augusta, Georgia is making headlines after FIVE people were arrested in connection with a woman who was allegedly being held captive as a “sex slave”.

Richmond County Sheriff’s Office responded to a home on Neville Drive on Tuesday after they received reports of an alleged victim of false imprisonment. A witness told law enforcement he saw a woman locked imprisoned inside the home, according to WJBF. The anonymous witness said the woman was “naked, beaten severely, and currently locked in a dog cage” — and that she “asked him for help.”

The eyewitness told the outlet when he was inside the home of 32-year-old Shawna Powell, he overheard another person inside the residence say multiple people were going to “have their way” with the caged victim which the witness said he took as meaning “basically rape her”. Then, the homeowner told him:

“That is my whore. She stole a bunch of stuff from me so she is going to be my sex slave and I am going to pimp her out until she pays it off.”

Just sickening…

Apparently, multiple people inside the home were armed — and the unnamed witness said he even had a gun pointed at him because some residents of the house didn’t know who he was. According to local news outlet 12 On Your Side, the witness was actually a former resident of the home himself — and his reason for returning to the home was to pick up some of his things. He said despite fear of retaliation, he felt compelled to help the imprisoned woman.

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Luckily law enforcement was quick to act. They detained three persons of interest at a local gas station before going to the home in question around 10:30 p.m. When they arrived, according to an incident report, they “observed the cage that the female was stated to be located in however it was empty at the time”. The report also notes the home was covered in both human and animal feces. They eventually found a woman lying naked on a bed who was “reluctant to approach them” — later identified as the person who was in the cage. Police noted she was “injured and emotionally distraught”.

The victim suffered severe injuries to her face, most notably her left eye which was swollen shut. She was treated at the scene and then taken to an undisclosed location for her safety. Thankfully she was rescued without any more issue, but Powell was still in the home. After police called out to her to no avail, she eventually exited her room claiming she was “asleep the whole time”.

Investigators arrested and charged 5 people — including Powell and residents Anjelika Figueroa, DeMichael Dawson, Savannah Piazzi, and Dawson Weston — with kidnapping, false imprisonment, aggravated assault, and firearm possession during the commission of a crime. Dawson also got a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

We hope the poor victim heals and gets the justice she deserves. We’re just glad someone actually said something!

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.

[Image via Richmond County Sheriff’s Office]