Mother hoping to heal relationship with Cleveland abduction victim
The mother of one of the three Cleveland abduction victims has not spoken to her daughter yet, but hopes she knows she loves her.
Barbara Knight, mother of Michelle Knight, told NBC's 'Today' show that when her daughter disappeared aged 20 in 2002, police and she thought she maybe just did not want to see her family any more.
She said her daughter's child had been taken from her just before her disappearance and she thought Michelle vanished because she was upset about "the baby".
She said she knows her daughter is angry at the world "because she probably thought she'd never be found."
She also said: "I don't want her to think that I forgot about her.
"Hopefully whatever happened between us, if something did, I hope it heals because I really want to take her back to Florida with me."
"I don't want to leave her up in Cleveland."
Meanwhile, neighbours at the house where Ms Knight, Amanda Berry, and Gina DeJesus had been held for around 10 years said they called police at least twice to check on it.
And police said they visited the Cleveland house twice over two unrelated incidents. They are now facing questions about their handling of the case.
One neighbour said she called police after her daughter saw a naked woman crawling on her hands and knees in the back garden of the house a few years ago.
Another said he called after hearing pounding on the doors and noticed plastic bags over the windows. Police arrived at the house both times, the neighbours say, but never went inside.
Three brothers, aged 50 to 54 have been arrested. One of them, former school bus driver Ariel Castro, owned the home, in a poor neighbourhood dotted with boarded-up houses.
Police would not say how the women were taken captive or whether they were sexually assaulted but they confirmed that ropes and chains were among evidence collected inside the house.
Police Chief Michael McGrath told NBC's 'Today' show that the women were restrained and "released out in the back yard once in a while".
He said he was "absolutely" sure police did everything they could to find the women over the years.
He disputed claims by neighbours that officers had been called to the house before for suspicious circumstances.
"We have no record of those calls coming in over the past 10 years," he said.
Investigators also are talking with relatives of at least one other missing woman from the neighbourhood.
The aunt of a 14-year-old girl who disappeared in 2007 near the house where the missing women were found says the girl's mother has spoken with the FBI about her niece.
"We're hoping for our miracle too," said Debra Summers, who described her niece, Ashley Summers, as not the type of girl who would leave without coming back.
