Share this @internewscast.com
The inset shows Timothy James Wood from the Maricopa County Jail, while the background reveals the Arizona location where he is accused of imprisoning his girlfriend in a shed for two weeks (Source: KSAZ).
In Arizona, a 36-year-old man has been apprehended after allegedly keeping his girlfriend confined in a locked shed for a fortnight. During that period, he is accused of repeatedly assaulting her both physically and sexually, and even going as far as burying her for several days, before she managed to make an escape.
Authorities have confirmed to Law&Crime that Timothy James Wood was arrested on Wednesday. He faces numerous charges including kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, sexual assault, criminal threat, assault, and aggravated assault.
Officers with the Phoenix Police Department at about 4 p.m. on July 2 responded to a 911 call regarding a reported assault at a residence in Maricopa County, Phoenix CBS affiliate KTVK reported. The victim reportedly escaped from a shed where she had been held against her will for weeks and made it to a neighbor”s home where she called 911.
Upon arriving at the neighbor’s home, first responders made contact with the woman, who reportedly provided details about her harrowing ordeal. She said she had been kept in a shed located behind the home of Wood’s father. Wood allegedly kept her inside by binding her ankles with tow straps, chaining the shed doors shut, and even stacking a wall of bricks outside the door.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
The victim claimed that during her two weeks in the shed, Wood whipped her with an electrical cord to force her into having sex with him or if she didn’t wear makeup. He also allegedly knelt on her neck — threatening to kill her — and, while holding a saw, threatened to cut her foot off.
The neighbor spoke to Phoenix Fox affiliate KSAZ, telling the station that when the victim arrived, she had two black eyes along with a series of other visible injuries. They said she was “frantic” and “scared to death” that Wood was going to “find her and kill her.”
With the front door to the shed blockaded, the victim said she was able to escape through the back of the shed.
Prosecutors provided additional details about the allegations against Wood during his first appearance in court, including how he allegedly dug a hole in the shed and buried the victim for two full days.
“He held her captive for over 14 days, imprisoned in a shed. He beat her. He forced sex on her under threats of death. He held down her neck to stop her breathing. He tied her down at the door with lots of chains. He threatened to cut off her foot with a saw, and then he pulled out a saw and actually did injure her foot to some extent,” prosecutors said, per KSAZ. “He dug a hole underneath the shed, and he buried her for two days. This victim, very well for 14 days, may have been worried that she may not survive this incident.”
Wood vigorously denied all of the allegations levied against him, claiming the victim had made up the whole ordeal.
“These are some crazy allegations. I don’t — that’s not me. I have three kids and this is just — she just got out of the loony bin or whatever. I don’t know,” he said. “I guess she has these episodes, and when she has an episode, I’m supposed to call her mom. I wasn’t home at the time. When I got home, the police were there, and this all just kind of broke out.”
Wood is currently being held in the Maricopa County Jail in lieu of $150,000 cash-only bond.