Colombian bus driver arrested after holding girl captive for 12 years

A school bus driver has been arrested in the kidnapping of a 7-year-old girl who was held captive in northwest Colombia for more than a decade, according to prosecutors. The girl escaped earlier this year but the case was only made public on Thursday.

The suspect, Carlos Humberto Grisales Higuita, was working as a school bus driver when he kidnapped a 7-year-old girl in Medellin in early 2012, according to a statement from the prosecutor’s office. He then took her to a house in the city center.

“He allegedly psychologically manipulated and sexually assaulted her, making her believe that such behavior was normal,” prosecutors said. “The victim’s name was changed, she was transferred to different properties in Medellin and Bello (Antioquia), kept out of school and isolated.”

When she turned 16, the victim complained to the suspect about the way she was being treated, after which she was permanently locked inside a house. The girl finally escaped in February, when she would have been around 19 years old, according to officials.

Grisales Higuita has been arrested and charged with simple kidnapping, sexual abuse of a minor under 14 years of age, sexual acts with a minor under 14 years of age, and child pornography. He denied the charges at his first court appearance.