A Michigan woman faces serious legal repercussions after allegedly confining her disabled sister-in-law in a basement for two years. During this time, the victim was reportedly starved and subjected to incessant radio noise.
Tasha Beamon, 48, now confronts charges of vulnerable adult abuse and unlawful imprisonment.
The situation came to light when the victim managed to escape and attempted to alert a neighbor by breaking their window on March 15. This desperate act led to police involvement and her eventual rescue, as reported by MLive.
Upon contacting authorities, the victim recounted her ordeal, explaining that Beamon, the widow of her deceased brother, had held her captive in the basement of a Saginaw residence for two years, until she could finally make her escape.
Tasha Beamon, 48, is facing charges of vulnerable adult abuse and unlawful imprisonment. (Saginaw County Sheriff’s Office)
Saginaw Police Detective Sgt. Jeff Doud revealed to the outlet, “She told officers she was not fed very often and that she didn’t have any access to water.”
The victim said Beamon had kept her on an old mattress since March 2024 with a nearby radio constantly blaring.
Police went to Beamon’s house and observed a lock on the basement door, a mattress on the floor and a radio playing loudly. Police also said there was a 5-gallon bucket of urine in the basement.
“Usually, somebody was there. She didn’t believe anyone was home at the time, so she was able to force a door open and escape,” Doud said.
Police went to the house and observed a lock on the basement door, a mattress on the floor and a radio playing loudly. (Google Maps)
Emergency responders transported the woman to a hospital, where she was treated for severe malnourishment. Hospital staff told police the woman would likely die if she were discharged.
The neighbor told ABC 12 that he was shocked to find the victim suddenly in his living room with a metal pipe “almost as big as she is.”
“I don’t even know how she had the power to even break the window,” the man said. “I thought she was like 78. She was tall, skin and bones.”
“She asks me to call the cops at first, which was weird. But that was the first thing she said to me: Call the cops,” he added.
Police said there was a 5-gallon bucket of urine in the basement. (Saginaw Police)
Beamon later admitted to police that she kept the woman in her house without allowing her to leave. She also made 40 calls to the hospital where her sister-in-law was staying.
Investigators suspect that Beamon was keeping the woman captive to collect her disability payments, Doud said.
Beamon was arrested on April 2 and booked into the Saginaw County Jail on $100,000 bond, the amount ordered after prosecutors described her as a danger to the public.
She will appear for a preliminary examination on April 20.
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