A North Dakota woman was allegedly chained to a bed for two years, beaten and sexually assaulted, before a maintenance worker heard her cries for help on Tuesday, police said.
When officers arrived at a Fargo apartment complex, they found the woman secured to a bedframe with a heavy chain and padlock fastened around her right ankle, according to court documents obtained by WCAX. A building repairman reported hearing muffled screams from the apartment, leading management to contact 911.
The woman was taken to a hospital, where she reportedly told authorities that her former husband, 40-year-old Arturo Calzada Becerril, and his girlfriend, 41-year-old Erendira Amoles, had beaten and sexually assaulted her. Investigators allege Calzada Becerril wanted to use the woman to support his immigration status.
Speaking through a translation app, the victim said Calzada Becerril brought her from Mexico in 2024 and confined her inside the apartment. Valley News Live reported that a security camera was aimed at her bed, while the bedroom windows had been covered with tin foil.
She told authorities that she received food only twice a day and was forced to use a bucket beside the bed as a toilet.
Amoles returned to the apartment with her 8-year-old daughter shortly after authorities found the woman.
Calzada Becerril told police that all three adults were from the same town in Mexico.
According to court records, Calzada Becerril said he kept the woman confined so “she did not run away,” claiming she was addicted to drugs and that he did not want her to resume using them, Inforum reported.
“The chains on the headboard appeared secured together with large bolts, washers, and nuts,” an investigative report reviewed by Inforum stated.
“The chain was wrapped around the headboard and sheathed in a foam pool noodle. The chains at the head and the foot of the bed both had Master Lock brand padlocks on them.”
The woman had bruises on her arms, legs and face. She also said she had been punched, leaving a scar on her forehead.
She told police that Calzada Becerril and Amoles allegedly pinned her down at one point, then beat and sexually assaulted her.
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Prosecutors allege that Calzada Becerril and Amoles held the woman, who is an American citizen, captive in an effort to obtain immigration status, Valley News Live reported.
Court documents state that Amoles typically controlled the woman and was the person who unlocked her from the bedframe.
Residents said they were stunned that such an ordeal allegedly took place inside their building, despite routine security patrols.
“We have security coming through from like 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. every single night,” Erin Schauer, a resident of the building, told Valley News Live.
“They stop in the hallways, they walk through every single building, they drive around,” she added.
“That is really scary. You hear about that all the time on the news, but the fact that it was literally right over there.”
Another resident, Reed Bertsch, said he had been concerned about crime in the building but found it “unbelievable” that no one noticed the woman allegedly being held captive.
“It’s unbelievable. I just can’t believe no one heard it, or you know, had any suspicion of something like that going on,” he said.
“It’s usually a little quaint place to live, but Fargo is getting crazy.”
Calzada Becerril and Amoles were arrested and face kidnapping and assault charges.
They were booked into the Cass County Jail and arraigned Friday morning, according to Inforum.
