A father-of-three accused of kidnapping his girlfriend, shackling her inside a shed and sexually abusing her for two weeks has been released from jail.
Timothy Wood, 36, was arrested on July 2 after his girlfriend appeared at a neighbor’s home covered in cuts and bruises, police said.
She told investigators she had been held captive, beaten with an electrical chord and even stuffed into a crawl space for two days.
The alleged victim said she managed to escape after two weeks by fleeing through an unlocked door.
The Phoenix Police Department responded to a 911 call from the neighbor and arrested Wood for aggravated assault, sexual assault, felony kidnapping, and unlawful imprisonment.
But he has since been released from jail after the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office requested that police obtain additional evidence.
The woman spoke to local news last week on the condition of anonymity to share her terror and shock that her alleged abuser was allowed to roam free.
‘They told me that there was enough evidence to put him away. They told me that they found everything. The forensic nurse even corroborated my injuries,’ she told local CBS affiliate, AZ Family.
James Wood, 36, was arrested in July and later released for allegedly kidnapping and abusing his girlfriend for two weeks
Wood was charged with aggravated assault, sexual assault, felony kidnapping, and unlawful imprisonment in early July
Wood was accused of holding his alleged victim captive in a shed outside his home (pictured) and would only let her into the house if he was with her
When asked what her message would be to the prosecutor who released Wood from jail, she told the outlet, ‘Enjoy my funeral’.
The department has since resubmitted the charges to the attorney’s office. Wood’s alleged victim told AZ Family that she started to cry when she heard the news.
‘I want to get him off the streets not only to get justice for me, but to keep him from hurting somebody else ‘cause he will.’
A spokesperson with the Phoenix Police Department confirmed to Daily Mail that the case has been resubmitted to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for review.
Harrowing abuse
Wood allegedly held his victim captive for two weeks in a backyard shed after she was evicted from her home.
He forced her to stay in the shed, even when she had to go to the bathroom, and would only allow her to the main home if they were together, court records obtained by AZ Central revealed.
She was allegedly subject to physical abuse during her captivity and told police that it only subsided when she had sex with him.
The alleged victim was confined to the shed that was locked with chains and bricks. In one harrowing instance, she was allegedly tied down by her ankles.
She told investigators that Wood struck her with an electrical cord and threatened to cut off her foot with a saw.
He even allegedly suffocated her by kneeling on her neck and told her he’d kill her if she reported him to authorities.
Wood denied the accusations against him in court, and the county attorney’s office asked the police to refile the charges
A neighbor said that Wood’s alleged victim was ‘frantic’ and ‘scared to death that he was going to find her and hill her’ after she escaped
In another instance, Wood allegedly forced her into a crawl space and buried her alive for two days.
She eventually found an unlocked door and said she escaped to a neighbor, who helped her call authorities.
The neighbor told local Fox affiliate, Fox 10 Phoenix, that she found the woman with two black eyes, a cut, a bruise on her leg, and a bruise on her head.
‘She was frantic. She was scared to death that he was going to find her and kill her,’ the neighbor recalled.
Prosecutors said during a court hearing that the woman was forced to have sex under death threats and was tied down with chains.
‘This victim, very well for 14 days, may have been worried that she may not survive this incident,’ a county prosecutor said.
Wood appeared in court last month and denied the current accusations levied against him.
He told the judge that he was a father of three and the allegations were ‘crazy’.
Wood then accused his alleged victim of just getting, ‘out of the loony bin’.
‘I guess she has these episodes, and when she has an episode, I’m supposed to call her mom,’ Wood said.
‘I wasn’t home at the time. When I got home, the police were there, and this all just kind of broke out.’
A letter written to the court from a previous victim stated that she feared Wood, and he threatened to kill her
Chilling criminal record
Wood has demonstrated a cycle of abuse since 2007 when he was arrested for aggravated assault, according to online court records.
He pleaded guilty to the charges and was arrested again in 2010 for attempting to commit domestic violence, for which he also pleaded guilty.
Court records obtained by AZ Central indicated that police arrested Wood in 2007 after witnesses reported he was attempting to kidnap a woman who was screaming near his truck.
He told police that the woman was his girlfriend and they were arguing about him leaving his car.
Wood was placed on probation, which he violated three years later by choking a pregnant woman.
He was sentenced to a year in prison with jail credit and completed his time the following year.
Daily Mail reached out to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for additional court records and to the Phoenix Police Department for an update on the refiled charges against Wood.
