Woman held in Excelsior Springs kidnapping had been captive since last month: Charges

Update: Timothy M. Haslett appeared in Clay County Circuit Court to face kidnapping and rape charges in the Excelsior Springs case. That story is posted here.

A woman who escaped captivity in an Excelsior Springs home had been raped repeatedly while being kept in a room designed to hold her hostage since sometime in early September, according to charging documents filed Tuesday in Clay County Circuit Court.

The charges were filed against Timothy M. Haslett, a 39-year-old Excelsior Springs man arrested Friday on suspicion of kidnapping and rape.

The victim was found early Friday morning after police were called to a residence for a reported sexual assault and kidnapping. When police were contacted, they were told she was wearing a metal collar with what appeared to be a padlock on the front, and a trash bag. The woman reported she had been held hostage at Haslett’s home since September.

When contacted by police, the woman was wearing latex lingerie and the metal collar as described. She told them she had been picked up on Prospect Avenue in Kansas City in early September. The Star generally does not identify possible victims of sexual assault without their permission.

The woman told investigators she had been kept in “a small room in the basement that he had built.”

“He kept her restrained in handcuffs on her wrists and ankles. She was able to get free when he took his child to school,” an Excelsior Springs detective wrote in a probable cause statement seeking criminal charges.

Police removed the lock, which was restricting the woman’s breathing. As she was being transported to the hospital, she pointed to the residence where she had been held, according to the charging documents.

During her time of imprisonment, the woman reported to authorities that Haslett had “whipped her” and raped her “frequently.”

Investigation continues

Clay County prosecutors have charged Haslett with first-degree rape, first-degree kidnapping and second-degree assault. He was due to make an initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon.

The woman’s statements to police led them to suspect others may have been hurt and in danger inside the house. Police first entered the property Friday morning to conduct what is termed a protective sweep, though no other victims were found at that time.

Charging documents filed on the case make no mention of other victims. Police have yet to confirm whether they believe Haslett harmed anyone else, though they have acknowledged they are investigating him for other crimes.

On Tuesday, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office posted a message to Facebook explaining why law enforcement officers were not saying more about the case publicly.

“It will take time to interview people involved. It will take time to use that information to see if the suspect in this case is connected to any more crimes. And when those things have happened, there will still be very little law enforcement can share until the case goes to court,” the post read in part. “Because if you want justice for victims and for people who have broken the law, that’s what has to happen.”

Three days of searching at Excelsior Springs home

For three days, the house in the 300 block of Old Orchard Avenue was blocked off by yellow police tape as area law enforcement agencies, including crime scene personnel, documented the property with photographs and carried large bags of evidence from within the ranch-style residence.

Police have also used a cadaver dog — a canine trained to track the missing or dead — to examine the yard and Haslett’s truck, though no findings related to that part of the investigation have been released.

Police Chief Gregory Dull said Sunday that investigators were beginning a review of the evidence collected to determine whether Haslett may be responsible for “other crimes.” The house has since been boarded up and fenced off.

Other law enforcement agencies have provided assistance to Excelsior Springs police, including the FBI.

Meanwhile, the events have left many in Excelsior Springs wondering what to make of it all — and made many unsettled about a local man accused of heinous crimes right in their own backyards.

Susan White, who lives across the street from Haslett’s residence, told The Star on Saturday that she was still in disbelief.

“It’s just so crazy, White said. “She was in the house and we didn’t even know.”