When a teenager went missing in a tight-knit community, neighbours didn’t question her parents who insisted she’d been kidnapped. Now police have found the horrific reality inside the tiny family apartment
A woman has been found “days away from death” after allegedly being locked in a tiny room by her parents for nearly three decades.
Mirella, now 42, was just 15 years old when she vanished without a trace in 1998. That year would be the last time she’d step outside her family’s apartment for 27 years.
And now the woman has finally been found in appalling conditions. Mirella was discovered in a skeletal state with injuries so severe that she was barely clinging on to life by a thread.
Her parents allegedly told neighbours at the time she went misisng that their daughter had simply disappeared. Then, they insisted that she’d been kidnapped. For years, no one questioned their account… but this summer, police made a horrific discovery in the couple’s home in in the city of Świętochłowice in southern Poland.
READ MORE: Newborn baby’s heartbreaking cause of death after dying with mum in tragic home birthREAD MORE: Worrying update on boy, 4 who vanished from grandparents’ home as cruel photo emerges
Concerns were raised in July when neighbours in the apartment block reported hearing a disturbance coming from inside. The police arrived and spoke to the elderly landlady, 82, who claimed nothing unusual was going on.
Police ended up speaking to Mirella directly, who reassured them that “everything was fine”. But one disturbing sign showed investigators that it was far from it.
Police quickly spotted severe wounds on Mirella’s legs and phoned an ambulance to seek medical help. She was rushed to hospital – and doctors said she was just “days away from death” from infection. Horrified witnesses said Mirella looked “extremely neglected”, and her legs “appeared to be necrotic”.
It soon emerged that the woman had allegedly never been to a dentist or seen a doctor during her time in captivity. Other small things we often take for granted, like going to the hairdresser or even taking a walk outside, were stripped from her as she lost all agency.
Her parents are said to have kept her confined to a small room in their flat, to isolate her from the outside world completely.
One neighbour said: “It’s unbelievable. I remember Mirella as a teenager. We used to play in front of the building when I visited my grandmother for the holidays. Then she suddenly disappeared under mysterious circumstances.”
Photographs obtained by Polish media outlet Fakt show the inside of the two-bed apartment where Mirella allegedly spent nearly three decades in captivity.
One haunting image shows the 42-year-old lying on a sofa in a room that seems to be frozen in time, complete with childhood toys.
Another picture reveals Mirella’s mother, who told local press: “We used to go out with her and visit friends at the garden”, but admitted she could not remember when that was.
When asked about the toys and children’s books in her adult daughter’s bedroom, she reportedly said: “I’ll throw those toys away, but I haven’t gotten to that point yet”.
Despite police miraculously saving Mirella in July, her horrific story is only now coming to light with locals posting a fundraiser to help her recover.
One local posted on social media: “Doctors determined that she was only days away from death due to infection. She has been in hospital for two months now due to her critical condition.”
“People who knew Mirella thought she left her ‘family’ home almost 30 years ago. Unfortunately, the truth turned out to be different. Much remains unknown, and several facts cannot be revealed at this stage.
“One thing is certain: the truth must come to light as to why this young, healthy 15-year-old stopped leaving her home and disappeared without a trace.
“It is unimaginable to spend so much time in one room. She herself says that she has never even seen her city develop, that it is behind in everything, that she has missed out on so many things, she has never been to a doctor, never obtained an ID card, never gone for a simple walk or even to the balcony.
“She’s never been to a dentist or a hairdresser. Her hair and teeth are in critical condition, even threatening her health, so visits to a private clinic are now necessary.”
Mirella spent two months in hospital fighting for her life after being rescued. Prosecutor Agnieszka Kwatera has now confirmed a criminal investigation has been launched. However, it is not yet clear what legal consequences Mirella’s parents will face.
A neighbour told Fakt: “She was polite and very pretty. still remember her mother telling me almost 30 years ago that Mirella was missing. Supposedly, someone had kidnapped her. It was a shock, but what were we supposed to do?
“They didn’t talk about it. Now it turns out that Mirella had been in that house all those years, and we never saw her once.”
But police say there is no evidence that the woman was held against her will, the Daily Mail reports.
Their statement said: “The findings made during the intervention did not indicate any crimes against the 42-year-old woman. There were no previous police interventions at the address provided, and the Municipal Police Headquarters in Świętochłowice had not received any missing person reports or other disturbing reports regarding the family.
“To clarify the circumstances of this case, the Criminal Division of the Municipal Police Headquarters in Świętochłowice is conducting an investigation to determine whether a crime was committed against the 42-year-old woman.
“Officers are collecting, analysing, and verifying information in this case. The collected evidence has also been forwarded to the prosecutor’s office.”