The pastor’s son accused of holding four people captive for years in a basement carried out his alleged abuse under the noses of his devout father and stepmother, the Daily Mail can exclusively reveal.
Donnie Birchfield Jr, 35, faces 16 charges after being arrested following the death of one of his ‘prisoners’ – a middle-aged woman allegedly held with her frail and mentally-challenged husband.
Police say two younger women both romantically involved with Birchfield were also discovered in the basement of the ostensibly idyllic home in a tree-lined road in the small city of Lancaster, South Carolina.
Now the Daily Mail can name the couple in the alleged horror story as Alvin Arnsdoff, 55, and his wife Shirley, 49, who died on July 25.
Arnsdoff’s distraught sister Terisa Hinson is determined to hold the entire family accountable for the emaciation condition of her mentally challenged brother and the death of her sister-in-law.
Former weightlifter Arnsdoff was so emaciated when found by horrified officers only days after his wife’s death that he was just 70lbs, his sister told the Daily Mail in a heart-rending exclusive interview.
She branded Birchfield an ‘evil monster’ and is demanding his parents, who insist on his innocence, be ‘charged with something’.
‘Detectives have told me they found Alvin and the others in the most deplorable conditions,’ Hinson revealed at her home roughly six miles from the alleged crime scene.
Donnie Birchfield Jr., 35, (pictured) has been branded an ‘evil monster’ by Terisa Hinson, whose brother was one of four victims held in his basement. He was only caught because Hinson’s sister-in-law, who was also a ‘prisoner’, died
Two younger women, both romantically involved with Birchfield, were also found in the basement of the supposedly idyllic home on a tree-lined street in Lancaster, South Carolina (pictured)
‘I was told they were made to live in a tent inside the basement. They were made to use the bathroom in a bucket. He denied them medical care. He denied them food. He stole their money.
‘They were not allowed to go anywhere unless Birchfield was with them. He was physically and mentally abusive towards them in every way you could think.
‘He is evil, pure evil. If the man was to walk out of the jailhouse today, I would be standing there and he wouldn’t make it.’
However, Birchfield was not the only family member in the 3,751 sq ft home, which occupies a lot that slopes down to reveal what could be a separate living area, as revealed in exclusive Daily Mail photos.
His 55-year-old father, Donnie Sr., the pastor of the thriving Friendship Baptist Church in Lancaster, lives there with his second wife, Wynette.
And questions are now being raised about how much the pastor and his wife may have known about what was allegedly happening under their own roof.
But on Wednesday morning, dressed in a gray t-shirt at his home, Pastor Birchfield appeared to dismiss the allegations against his son, insisting, ‘They’re just not true.’
When reminded that they are contained in 16 police arrest warrants, he added: ‘It’s amazing how things have been twisted in the news. I’d like to tell you more, but I can’t.’
Daily Mail can reveal that both Donnie Sr. (left) and his wife Wynette live in the same home where Birchfield’s held the four ‘prisoners’
Hinson described her brother, 55-year-old Alvin Arnsdoff (bottom right), as mentally challenged with the mind of a 12-year-old. She said police found him living in deplorable conditions and weighing just 70lbs (PICTURED: A 2019 photo taken when he joined the weightlifting and strength group called Iron Barbell Team)
He would not speak of his own knowledge of the alleged horror and referred us to his son’s attorney, M. Ryan Payne. Daily Mail had earlier called Payne, who has not responded.
But Hinson disagreed with the pastor’s dismissal of his son’s alleged wrongdoing, saying: ‘I want Birchfield to be charged to the fullest extent. And I also want his parents to be charged with something.’
‘How could they not have known something was strange. You can’t have four people in your house for up years and years and you didn’t see them or hear them.
‘Alvin never heard them upstairs, but he told police that Shirley used to hear them.’
Donnie Sr and Wynette headed out around lunchtime on Tuesday in their small SUV and returned late afternoon, as revealed in exclusive Daily Mail pictures. The pastor’s blue truck was left on the driveway.
Arnsdoff was adopted into Hinson’s family. ‘He’s now being treated at a nursing home facility and is getting back on his feet. He’s gaining weight; he’s doing good.
‘But I can’t help thinking that it could have been both of them.
‘He could have died like Shirley. We don’t know her cause of death yet, but it was probably not being able to eat properly or have medical care.’
She alleged: ‘It was probably due to neglect by him, due to being the monster that he is. I would call him a monster straight to his face.’
Hinson (pictured) claimed that police told her Birchfield made her brother and his wife sleep in a tent, use the bathroom in a bucket, denied them medical care, denied them food and stole their money
Arnsdoff and his late wife Shirley became connected to Birchfield, above, around six years ago when they faced eviction from their rental home, though exactly how they met remains unclear
Arnsdoff’s tragically emaciated body is in stark contrast to a photo taken in 2019, when he was proudly introduced in an Instagram post as the newest member of a weightlifting and strength group called Iron Barbell Team.
He and his late wife came into Birchfield’s orbit about six years ago when they were being evicted from their rental home. It is not known exactly how they met.
But Hinson said: ‘Birchfield happened to come along and say, hey y’all, come and live with us. Then some years ago I began to lose touch with Alvin.
‘I used to see him everywhere… yet he just kind of vanished about three years ago. He likes to go places, like the beach and the mountains and I just figured, that’s where he’s at.’
The anxious sister eventually got Arnsdoff on the phone and was told ‘hey, I’m good, you ain’t got nothing to worry about’.
‘But six months ago, I got the police to get in touch with him, and he gave them the same story. I’m convinced he was being manipulated to say that.
‘What was I supposed to do? I believed what my brother told me. Unfortunately, Alvin has the mentality of a 12-year-old and a lot of people have taken advantage of him.’
Amid Hinson’s heartbreak is guilt. ‘I feel a lot of this is my fault because I could have stepped in more and stopped this before it got out of hand,’ she said.
Hinson said she contacted him multiple times, but was constantly reassured by Arnsdoff that there was nothing to worry about, but in hindsight, she feels he was being coerced
The pastor and his wife were spotted leaving the 3,751 sq ft home around lunchtime on Tuesday in their small SUV, later returning in the afternoon, as captured in exclusive Daily Mail photos
‘I will go from the time it starts to the time it’s done. And if he ever gets parole, I will be there to make sure he does not get out to do this to somebody else.’
When asked how she would do that, Hinson replied emphatically: ‘I will try everything within my power.’
Birchfield is also accused of plundering Arnsdoff and his wife’s bank accounts, allegedly using over $11,800 to pay off credit card debts, and reportedly spending at least $2,000 at Walmart on their credit and debit cards
Arrest warrants obtained by the Daily Mail reveal one of the other two women in the basement had been in a ‘romantic/intimate’ relationship with Birchfield since 2015. The other one was similarly described from September, 2024.
The elder woman is called Brittany, said Hinson, who added: ‘I understand the second girl was brought in from Tennessee. I don’t know anything more than that.’
Birchfield’s arrest warrant for allegedly physically abusing the older girlfriend states: ‘Donnie routinely assaulted the victim and would control everything that the victim would do.
‘This would include everyday needs such as consuming sustenance, using the bathroom and having necessities available for her.
‘Donnie would not allow the victim to leave the residence, unless he was present with her and only with his permission.’
Birchfield would control her cellphone use, ‘often times texting friends and family on her behalf or physically preventing her from calling anybody for help.’
Birchfield’s relationship with his older girlfriend he kept in his basement began in 2015, who he allegedly ‘routinely assaulted’, and controlled her use of the bathroom, according to an arrest warrant
His newer girlfriend was held in the basement and could only leave with his permission, even taking his abuse so that he controlled her cell phone usage and routinely strangled her, another arrest report states
Of the younger woman, his warrant lays out a similar scenario and adds: ‘The victim was held captive in Donnie’s basement and only left with his permission and with him being present.
‘The victim has been physically assaulted numerous times (approximately every day…) and has routinely strangled her during some of the assaults where she thought she was going to lose consciousness.
‘During the assaults, Donnie would make threats… saying that he was going to kill her, harm her family and explain how he knows how to get rid of a body from past experience.’
Birchfield is also accused of pillaging Arnsdoff and his wife’s bank accounts, allegedly using more than $11,800 to pay off credit card debts. It is also claimed he spent at least $2,000 at Walmart on their credit and debit cards.
He has been charged with four counts of exploitation of a vulnerable adult, four counts of false imprisonment, two counts of abuse of a vulnerable adult, two counts of domestic violence and four financial charges.
Birchfield is being held on a $150,000 bond at Lancaster County Detention Center.
Donnie Sr and Wynette met and married in 2000, according to her Facebook page.
She launched an apparent defense of her stepson on social media after news broke of Birchfield’s charges, reposting the words of a friend saying: ‘Not everything you read or hear – even in the news – is always the full truth. Before resharing or repeating something, take a moment to pause.’
The post drew 54 comments of support, with comments such as ‘praying for you and your family’ and ‘the devil is working but God will bring you through this storm’.
Birchfield has been charged with four counts of exploitation of a vulnerable adult, four counts of false imprisonment, two counts of abuse of a vulnerable adult, two counts of domestic violence and four financial charges
Wynette appeared to come to her stepson’s aid on Facebook, copying from another friend’s post that ‘not everything you read or hear – even in the news – is always the full truth’
However, the post cut no ice with Hinson. ‘That sounds like a load of BS to me,’ she said.
Daily Mail asked the Lancaster Police Department to confirm Arnsdoff and Shirley were in the basement. We also asked if Birchfield’s father and stepmom had been interviewed and might possibly face charges.
Spokeswoman Erin Tindal said: ‘At this time, we are not releasing any information besides the incident reports of Mr. Birchfield Jr. We will be doing a release in conjunction with the SC Attorney General’s Office at some point.
‘This is still an active investigation.’
