Ariel Castro Faces 329 Criminal Charges, Including Aggravated Murder

Ariel Castro, the man accused of kidnapping, imprisoning, raping, and torturing Gina DeJesus, 23, Michelle Knight, 32, and Amanda Berry, 27, for a decade, was indicted on 329 criminal charges on Friday by a grand jury.

The charges include 139 counts of rape, 177 of kidnapping, seven of gross sexual imposition, three of assault, and one of aggravated murder.

The aggravated murder charge is from Michelle Knight’s fourth pregnancy. According to a police report, Castro caused Knight to suffer at least five miscarriages by starving her and beating her in the stomach.

According to the New York Post:

Since Ohio is one of 38 states to have a fetal homicide law, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Legal experts said the murder case will be complicated by a lack of physical evidence of the miscarriage and medical records.

On Saturday, Castro’s attorney said his client will plead not guilty on all 329 charges.