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‘Been through hell and back’: Cleveland women held captive as sex slaves speak out, thank world for support

HOW THEY LOOKED THEN: Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight are seen in these photos distributed after they disappeared years ago.

HOW THEY LOOKED THEN: Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight are seen in these photos distributed after they disappeared years ago. (
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HELL HOUSE: The Cleveland home where the three women were kept and sadistically abused for years, until they were freed by rescuers May 7. Neighbors kicked in parts of the front door to get to the captives.

HELL HOUSE: The Cleveland home where the three women were kept and sadistically abused for years, until they were freed by rescuers May 7. Neighbors kicked in parts of the front door to get to the captives. (EPA)

The three victims of the horrific Cleveland kidnapping have spoken publicly for the first time since their rescue last May — sending out a message of thanks to supporters in a video posted on YouTube at midnight today.

Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight expressed their appreciation for more than $1 million in donations sent to them from around the world, and vowed to overcome the trauma of their decade-long captivity.

“I want everyone to know how happy I am to be home with my family,” says Berry, who escaped with her 6-year-old daughter in tow. “I’m getting stronger each day, and having my privacy has helped immensely.”

In the video, Michelle Knight — who is seen for the first time since the rescue — read a statement describing her determination in the face of her ordeal.

“I may have been through hell and back, but I am strong enough to walk through hell with a smile on my face and with my head held high and with my feet firmly on the ground,” she says.

Knight says she didn’t “want to be consumed by hatred” after suffering in the home of Ariel Castro, who kept the women locked up and repeatedly raped them, likely fathering Berry’s child, police said.

“With that being said, we need to take a leap of faith and know God is in control,” she adds. “God has a plan for all of us. The plan that he gave me is to help others who have been in the same situation I have been in.”

The women — kidnapped between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16 and 20 — give thanks to the thousands of donors to the Cleveland Courage Fund.

“I would like, personally, to thank the Courage Fund, everybody in general, and also my community, my neighbors,” Nancy Ruiz, DeJesus’ mom, says in the video, shot on July 2 in a Cleveland law office and placed online this morning by a PR firm.

“Parents that do have loved ones missing, please, do me on big favor: Count on your neighbors. Don’t be afraid to ask for the help.”

The charges against Castro, 52, include numerous counts of kidnapping and rape and one count of aggravated murder — for forcing Knight to terminate a pregnancy. He is being held in lieu of $8 million bail.

Knight, who may have suffered hearing loss and other damage from her decade-long nightmare, ends the video with a hopeful message.

“Thank you for all of your prayers,” she says. “I’m looking forward to my brand-new life.”