ASHLAND, Ohio — A woman whispered “please hurry” to an Ohio police dispatcher while her alleged abductor slept just feet away. Having freed herself from ties, the woman remained on the phone, slowly creeping out of the bedroom.
“I’m afraid he might hear me and catch me and he’s strong,” she told the dispatcher, according to Tuesday’s 911 audio released by Ashland police. She said the man was armed with a Taser.
Ashland police officers came to the victim’s rescue more than 20 minutes later, busting in the abandoned house where she was held, the audio reveals. The 911 call led to the discovery of three bodies, authorities said.
Shawn M. Grate, 40, described as homeless, was arrested on the scene.
Grate allegedly kidnapped the woman, forcing her to engage in sexual activity since Sunday, according to court documents.
When asked whether she was bleeding, the woman answered, “Not anymore.”
Shawn M. Grate’s booking mug shot.
Ashland officers later uncovered the remains of two women in and near the house where Grate was allegedly holding the kidnapped woman.
Grate is charged with kidnapping and two counts of murder. He was being held Thursday in the Ashland County Jail, awaiting a bond hearing set for 3 p.m. ET Friday. It wasn’t clear whether he had an attorney and CNN was unable to reach anyone in his family.
Stacey Stanley, from Greenwich, Ohio, has been identified as one of the deceased victims, Ashland County Prosecutor Christopher Tunnell said in a press release. The other body has yet to be positively identified.
Stacey Stanley was known to be missing since last Thursday, September 8. Friends of the family have set up a GoFundMe page to help pay her funeral costs.
The unidentified woman was killed between August 16 and September 13, according to court documents.
Grate led police to a third body in nearby Richland County, that was found near the rubble of a burned home, prosecutors said. The body has not been identified. Charges have not been filed in that case.
Ashland is a rural city about 60 miles southwest of Cleveland.
