Police: Dyersburg woman held captive locked in closet for weeks

DYERSBURG, Tenn. (KFVS) - Dyersburg Police are searching for a man accused of kidnapping a woman and holding her against her will for several weeks.

On Saturday, March 11, around 1:30 p.m., Dyersburg police responded to a possible domestic complaint on Schaffer Street.

According to a release from the Dyersburg Police Department, officers were informed that a man working in the area was approached by a woman who reported that she had been kidnapped weeks earlier and just escaped.

Officers arrived to find the 40-year-old victim hiding under a new construction home in the area. She had facial cuts and was reported to be very thin, weighing under 100 pounds.

According to a report from the victim, for approximately two months, she was forced to stay in a closet that was locked by some type of locking device with a cable and was only allowed out of the closet for an hour a day. The victim was provided very limited food and no bathroom facilities.

Officers and detectives were able to locate the vacant house on Ayers Street where the victim was being held. Evidence found included human waste inside the residence as described by the victim, according to the release.

The victim identified Brenton Bell, 30, from Dyersburg, as the suspect. Bell and the victim were in a relationship, and according to the victim, it turned physically abusive, which led to her being held captive.

Bell is wanted for aggravated kidnapping. He is a black male, with a height of 5′5″ and weight of 150 pounds.

The victim was treated and released from West Tennessee Healthcare Dyersburg. The police dept. contacted a WRAP advocate to provide additional domestic violence services to the victim.

Anyone with information as to where Bell may be located is urged to call the Dyersburg Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division at (731) 288-7679, or Crime Stoppers at (731) 285-TIPS.

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