Ariel Castro Death: Kidnapper’s Body Claimed By Family

As questions about Ariel Castro’s death continue, the Cleveland kidnapper’s body was claimed by his family. Franklin County Coroner Jan Gorniak announced that a funeral home picked up the body on Friday.

Castro was one month into a life-long sentence when he hanged himself on Tuesday night. He had been taken off suicide watch before his death.

The Cleveland kidnapper’s death is currently under investigation by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. NBC News reports that authorities are trying to find out how Castro was able to kill himself while under strict supervision.

According to corrections, Ohio’s most infamous inmate was under strict guard and officers checked on him every 30 minutes. It was during one of the routine checks that Ariel Castro hung himself with a bedsheet.

Gorniak confirmed the injuries. She added that she wasn’t sure if the funeral home working with Castro’s family was hired to cremate him or prepare his body for burial.

Gary Mohr, director of the Ohio Department of Corrections, explained that two state reviews are being conducted into Ariel Castro’s death, notes The Los Angeles Times.

One review will look at the suicide and the other will look into Castro’s care and circumstances in the days before he died. The former bus driver was sentenced to life in prison plus 1,000 years for 937 counts of rape, kidnap, and aggravated murder. He kidnapped and kept Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight in his Cleveland home for a decade.

Authorities found a suicide note at Castro’s house after his arrest in May. He was placed on suicide watch initially, but his status was later changed. The Correctional Reception Center in Orient, Ohio had him in protective custody, which is normally used to protect the prisoner from other inmates.

Ariel Castro’s death was not mourned by his former neighbors, or likely the three women he once held prisoner.