Teen Held as Sex Slave Knew Captor: Police

A teenager held captive in a house for more than three years before escaping with a relative's help initially went there voluntarily but wasn't allowed to leave when she wanted to go home, an Illinois police chief said today. He said the 19-year-old St. Louis woman met the man socially "through someone else when they were partying, and a relationship built," eventually leading to her visit of his home about the time she was reported missing. "When she (soon) decided to go back to her parents, he wouldn't allow it."

She finally bolted from the home Monday; a police SWAT team raided the one-story bungalow yesterday, rescuing a now-2-year-old boy who she says was fathered by her captor. Investigators plan to have the child's DNA tested to determine whether that is the case. The police chief said the three days between the teen's report and the raid on the home was largely spent substantiating her story; investigators were also working a separate sexual-assault case and lacked the manpower to go any faster. No charges have been filed in the case. (More Illinois stories.)