Woman Claims Boyfriend Locked Her In Shed, 'Buried Her for 2 Days' and Sexually Assaulted Her

Officers with the Phoenix Police Department responded to a 911 call at approximately 4 p.m. on July 2 for a reported assault. When they arrived, they encountered a woman who claimed she'd just escaped from a shed where she'd been held for the past two weeks.

The woman told first responders that it was her then-boyfriend Timothy James Wood, 36, who had been responsible for holding her against her will. Recently evicted, she said that she had initially been staying in the shed behind her boyfriend's father's home, according to AZ Family, but things quickly changed.

She alleged that Wood managed to keep her inside the shed for 14 days by binding her ankles with tow straps, chaining the double doors to the shed shut and stacking a wall of bricks outside to keep them from opening.

The victim said she was finally able to make her escape through the back of the shed, but not after enduring alleged threats, violence, sexual assault, and even being buried alive.

Talking with Fox affiliate KSAZ, the neighbor described the victim's disheveled appearance when she arrived, saying that she was bruised throughout her body with evidence of swelling and even bite marks. Hospital staff later confirmed additional injuries, including a broken rib.

"She was frantic. She was scared to death that he was going to find her and kill her," the neighbor told KSAZ. "She had two black eyes, and then she had a cut right in here. She had a bruise on her head. She had a bruise on her leg."

While speaking with police, the victim shared some of her alleged ordeal over the previous two weeks, as detailed in court by the prosecution.

"He held her captive for over 14 days, imprisoned in a shed. He beat her. He forced sex on her under threats of death. He held down her neck to stop her breathing. He tied her down at the door with lots of chains," a prosecutor said, per KSAZ.

"He threatened to cut off her foot with a saw, and then he pulled out a saw and actually did injure her foot to some extent," they continued. "He dug a hole underneath the shed, and he buried her for two days."

Throughout, the victim said that Wood would make her wear makeup to hide injuries on her face, per court documents.

"This victim, very well for 14 days, may have been worried that she may not survive this incident," the prosecution argued.

After two weeks of this alleged ongoing torment, the woman said she was able to make her escape through a rear access door of the shed that had been left unlocked.

Later that same day, Wood was apprehended and taken into custody outside his parents' home. He was booked into the Maricopa County Jail for kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, sexual assault, criminal threat, assault, and three counts of aggravated assault.

Wood denied everything in his first court appearance, calling them false allegations.

He told the court, "These are some crazy allegations. I don't ... that's not me. I have three kids and this is just ... she just got out of the loony bin or whatever. I don't know. It's in Mesa."

"I guess she has these episodes, and when she has an episode, I'm supposed to call her mom. I wasn't home at the time. When I got home, the police were there, and this all just kind of broke out," he added.

Despite his denials, police found evidence that supports the woman's claims, including chains and tow straps in the shed, as well as a mattress. A forensic nurse determined that the victim's injuries were also consistent with the details of her story.

Wood was previously sentenced to a year in prison for attempted aggravated domestic violence in 2010. He is currently behind bars in Maricopa County Jail on a $150,000 cash-only bond.