Jerry Lee Curry, 51, has been accused of "torturing" his twin girls, whom he subjected to long periods of captivity in chains. Photo / Supplied
WARNING: DISTURBING CONTENT
A man has been charged for allegedly raping, starving and beating his twin daughters in their Minneapolis home.
Charges were filed against Jerry Lee Curry, 51, who has been accused of "torturing" his twin girls, whom he subjected to long periods of captivity in chains, the Daily Mail reported.
A protective order against Curry also revealed that he fathered two children by one of the twins.
According to the Star Tribune, one of the twin's children was born in June 2014 and the other in October 2017.
The twin sisters, who have diminished mental and behavioral capacity, are now in their 20s.
According to the charges, the abuse had been going on for at least 10 years until one of the twins escaped to alert authorities last May.
Police have yet to locate the 48-year-old mother, who has not been identified.
The charges filed against Curry allege that he also beat their 10-year-old daughter, but not nearly as bad as the twins.
One of the twins, Victim A, was the one who managed to escape last May. She was reported missing by her mother and authorities found her at the Salvation Army shelter, according to the Tribune.
Authorities said she suffered "injuries consistent with abuse". On May 9, human services officials removed the other twin, Victim B, and their younger sister from the home.
In June, Victim A gave a detailed account of the abuse to authorities. She told police that the abuse began when her parents realised she was "sexually active".
According to the Tribune, Victim A said her father repeatedly put a dog chain tightly around one or both ankles and connected it to the parents' bedroom door "to prevent her from seeing men" and to deny her food.
She said she would be chained for days at a time with her hands tied behind her back. Curry would allegedly beat her bloody while she was bound.
Victim B, who was twice-impregnated by Curry, told authorities she doesn't "ever remember having enough food".
DNA samples from Curry and Victim B confirmed that he was the father of her daughter and the twins' biological father as well.
Victim B said Curry would beat both of them with fists, bats and brooms "if they misbehaved".
The 10-year-old was examined in early May and there were no signs of physical abuse.
But the young girl did tell authorities that Curry made her strike her twin sisters with a stick.
The twins were also allegedly naked while they were chained and left to wallow in her faeces and urine.
Victim B also alleged that her parents kept the twin's Social Security disability payments to buy drugs and alcohol.
Curry was charged more than nine months after the twins and younger sister first made the abuse allegations known to authorities.
County attorney spokesman Chuck Laszewski told the Tribune that investigators needed the time to collect sufficient evidence.
Curry was charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct, stalking, first-and second-degree assault, abuse of a vulnerable adult, and a gross-misdemeanor count of child endangerment.
He remains in jail in lieu of US$750,000 bail.
New schedule details will follow after assessing the situation.