We recently posted a story about a man who kept his daughter imprisoned in the cellar for 24 years and even fathered six children with her. At the time, the exact details of how he kept her imprisoned were scarce but new details have emerged including a map of the room he kept them in and how he managed to hide it from his wife and kids who lived in the main part of the house.
Elisabeth Fritzl and three of her children (ages 19, 18, and 5) were hidden away in the cellar of the house while the rest of the family lived upstairs oblivious as to what was going on. To keep the family from going into the cellar, Josef Fritzl forbid the family from entering the space or else face the consequences. Soundproofing was added in order to prevent noise from traveling from the cellar to the rest of the house. The entrance to the cellar was hidden inside a workshop that was only accessible from the outside of the building. In case prying eyes entered the workspace, Josef hid the door behind a bookshelf a reinforced concrete door hidden behind a bookshelf. The door could only be opened by a special code and remote control, which he carried at all times.

The cellar rooms took up a total of about 650 square feet and was divided into cells which were between 5.6 ft and about 6 ft high. Inside the cellar were two bedrooms, a kitchen, and bathroom with shower. A television and radio were the only means of entertainment and no fresh air or sunlight was provided to the four, having seen the sun only after being freed from captivity. Officials believe a lack of oxygen contributed to the illness of the 19-year-old, an illness that forced Josef to take her to the hospital and eventually led to his demise.

Officials have no idea how Josef managed to hide the family from everyone. You would think someone would have seen a man bringing food and clothing to a small room on the side of his home. Even more surprising is the fact the family in the home had no idea as to what was happening below them. City officials say Josef received authorization to build the cellar in 1978, which was supposed to be a small room. An inspector looked at the cellar a year before Elisabeth disappeared and found everything was up to code. They believe the man slowly added to the “apartment” as his family grew.

We were completely shocked when we heard about this. We cannot believe his family really had absolutely no idea what was going on below. Honestly, they had to have noticed the extra clothes and food purchases the man made in addition to the fact they would never see those purchases again. How could he live normally knowing what he was doing to his children downstairs. Other news sources claim Josef is facing a 25 year sentence for his actions, which is ridiculously lenient in our opinion. Although it is unlikely he will be able to serve the time given his age, he should definitely be punished more. Click the link for more pictures of the cellar.

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