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A harrowing picture of the four foot metal box two marijuana growers kept a 15-year-old girl they used as a sex slave has been released for the first time.
The photograph of the unnamed rape victim's coffin-like prison was shown in court today as her alleged captors Ryan Balletto, 30, and Patrick Pearmain 24, appeared before a judge in Northern California.
The two men face charges of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute more than 1,000 marijuana plants. In addition, Pearmain faces charges of kidnapping to commit robbery or rape and unlawful sex with a minor and Balletto faces charges of lewd and lascivious acts with a child.
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Authorities said the men locked the girl in the four feet long, two feet wide and two feet high box to stop her ruining the 'mission,' their code word for the marijuana operation.
The box was hoisted at an angle and a hose was inserted 'to wash her off and rinse human waste from the inside of the box without letting her out,' police said.
The girl's current whereabouts or condition were not revealed.
According to court records, the suspects appeared before a federal judge during a three-minute hearing on Wednesday but entered no pleas. The two are scheduled to be arranged on Friday in federal court.
The teen went missing in Los Angeles in April and was discovered a month later at the marijuana farm after a large-scale drug bust.
The Los Angeles Police Department described the 15-year-old girl as a runaway. They believe she was kidnapped by Balletto and his associate Pearmain5, and taken to their growing operation in Lake County, California.
According to a criminal complaint, when the girl wasn't being used to harvest marijuana she was locked for days at a time in the tiny prison.
The toolbox had holes punched in it so she could breathe, and a blanket. Another hole was drilled into the box so they could a run a hose through it to clean out human waste without letting her out.
It was spray-painted with 'an animal skull surrounding the shadow image of a human skull with the logo 'bone collector.'
After her rescue the girl recalled two occasions where she was in the box for three days.
Apparently Balletto called her a 'trooper' for not screaming in the box.
She was also told 'not to (expletive) up' because the men had a 'whole lot of money on the (marijuana) grow.'
In addition to the toolbox, police
found a homemade wooden rack used for sexual bondage, a noose , two
dildos, and a white towel with blood stains on it.
LAPD contacted the Lake County Police Department, saying Balletto may have been responsible for the girl's kidnapping. Officers showed up at Balletto's house on April 29, asking about the teen.
The next day the girl called the police to report that she was okay.
Authorities were able to trace that call to the girls location at a west Sacramento motel, where the two men were arrested and the teen transferred to protective custody.
While arresting the men, police found a notebook with what seems to be a script written for the girl for her phone call to police.
'They think I'm missing' and 'I just want to make sure Ryan Balletto doesn't get in any trouble' are two of the lines from the script.
The girl told investigators that both men had sex with her, and that it was consensual with Pearmain. Since she is a minor, officers informed her that she is 'legally unable' to consent to sex with an adult.
The sex with Balletto, she said, was 'not as consensual' and that she did it to 'help him out.'
Federal investigators believe there may be more victims.
Police later raided Balletto's grow operation and home where they found 1,400 pot plants, $4,000 in cash, and 'the largest and most sophisticated bulk of weapons seized in recent (department) history.'
They found a cache of 22 firearms, including high-powered military-grade sniper and assault rifles, automatic assault rifles and pistols. Many of the firearms were already loaded.
Along with the firearms they found military-grade body armor and scopes, high-capacity magazines and ammunition.
Authorities found most of the firearms in a safe at Balletto's house. A ponytail of hair was also found in the safe.
Balletto's girlfriend, 27-year-old Christa McConnell, was arrested during the raid on the home.
McConnell has five children with Balletto, according to the criminal complaint. During their raid they found a 7-month-old baby sleeping on the master bed with a loaded gun only two-feet away from the headboard.
All five children were placed in the custody of Lake County Child Protective Services. McConnell faces child-endangerment and weapons charges.
Last year, Lake County had 87 cases of residents cultivating marijuana. According to public information releases posted on the Sheriff's Office website, police have already eradicated nearly 60,000 pot plants just this month.
'Some in our community believe that marijuana grow operations are run by compassionate caregivers interested only in supplying medicine to the sick, U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag said in a written statement.
'Unfortunately, this case illustrates what we in law enforcement see - marijuana grow operations that include heavily armed, violent individuals, motivated by profit, carrying out abuse of vulnerable victims.'
Source: Mail Online
A harrowing picture of the four foot metal box two marijuana growers kept a 15-year-old girl they used as a sex slave has been released for the first time.
The photograph of the unnamed rape victim's coffin-like prison was shown in court today as her alleged captors Ryan Balletto, 30, and Patrick Pearmain 24, appeared before a judge in Northern California.
The two men face charges of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute more than 1,000 marijuana plants. In addition, Pearmain faces charges of kidnapping to commit robbery or rape and unlawful sex with a minor and Balletto faces charges of lewd and lascivious acts with a child.
Scroll down for video
Toolbox: A harrowing picture of the four foot
metal box, above, two marijuana growers kept a 15-year-old girl they
used as a sex slave has been released for the first time
Authorities said the men locked the girl in the four feet long, two feet wide and two feet high box to stop her ruining the 'mission,' their code word for the marijuana operation.
The box was hoisted at an angle and a hose was inserted 'to wash her off and rinse human waste from the inside of the box without letting her out,' police said.
The girl's current whereabouts or condition were not revealed.
According to court records, the suspects appeared before a federal judge during a three-minute hearing on Wednesday but entered no pleas. The two are scheduled to be arranged on Friday in federal court.
The teen went missing in Los Angeles in April and was discovered a month later at the marijuana farm after a large-scale drug bust.
Captors: 30-year-old Ryan Balletto, left, and
25-year-old Patrick Pearmain, right, were arrested in May after the girl
they kidnapped called police, and authorities traced the call to a
motel in Sacramento
Kidnapped: A girl who went missing in April in
Los Angeles ended up being used as a sex slave on a marijuana farm in
Northern California until she was rescued on May 1
Prisoner: Balletto and Pearmain kept the girl locked in a 4-foot by 2-foot metal toolbox, sometimes for days at a time
The Los Angeles Police Department described the 15-year-old girl as a runaway. They believe she was kidnapped by Balletto and his associate Pearmain5, and taken to their growing operation in Lake County, California.
According to a criminal complaint, when the girl wasn't being used to harvest marijuana she was locked for days at a time in the tiny prison.
The toolbox had holes punched in it so she could breathe, and a blanket. Another hole was drilled into the box so they could a run a hose through it to clean out human waste without letting her out.
It was spray-painted with 'an animal skull surrounding the shadow image of a human skull with the logo 'bone collector.'
After her rescue the girl recalled two occasions where she was in the box for three days.
Apparently Balletto called her a 'trooper' for not screaming in the box.
She was also told 'not to (expletive) up' because the men had a 'whole lot of money on the (marijuana) grow.'
Trooper: According to the criminal complaint, Balletto called the girl a 'trooper' for not screaming in the box
LAPD contacted the Lake County Police Department, saying Balletto may have been responsible for the girl's kidnapping. Officers showed up at Balletto's house on April 29, asking about the teen.
The next day the girl called the police to report that she was okay.
Authorities were able to trace that call to the girls location at a west Sacramento motel, where the two men were arrested and the teen transferred to protective custody.
While arresting the men, police found a notebook with what seems to be a script written for the girl for her phone call to police.
'They think I'm missing' and 'I just want to make sure Ryan Balletto doesn't get in any trouble' are two of the lines from the script.
The girl told investigators that both men had sex with her, and that it was consensual with Pearmain. Since she is a minor, officers informed her that she is 'legally unable' to consent to sex with an adult.
Horde: Police found a huge arsenal of weapons during a raid on the growing operation and Balletto's home
Federal investigators believe there may be more victims.
Police later raided Balletto's grow operation and home where they found 1,400 pot plants, $4,000 in cash, and 'the largest and most sophisticated bulk of weapons seized in recent (department) history.'
They found a cache of 22 firearms, including high-powered military-grade sniper and assault rifles, automatic assault rifles and pistols. Many of the firearms were already loaded.
Along with the firearms they found military-grade body armor and scopes, high-capacity magazines and ammunition.
Girlfriend arrested: Balletto's girlfriend
Christa McConnell was also arrested. She faces child endangerment
charges for leaving loaded weapons within reach of her five children
Authorities found most of the firearms in a safe at Balletto's house. A ponytail of hair was also found in the safe.
Balletto's girlfriend, 27-year-old Christa McConnell, was arrested during the raid on the home.
McConnell has five children with Balletto, according to the criminal complaint. During their raid they found a 7-month-old baby sleeping on the master bed with a loaded gun only two-feet away from the headboard.
All five children were placed in the custody of Lake County Child Protective Services. McConnell faces child-endangerment and weapons charges.
Last year, Lake County had 87 cases of residents cultivating marijuana. According to public information releases posted on the Sheriff's Office website, police have already eradicated nearly 60,000 pot plants just this month.
'Some in our community believe that marijuana grow operations are run by compassionate caregivers interested only in supplying medicine to the sick, U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag said in a written statement.
'Unfortunately, this case illustrates what we in law enforcement see - marijuana grow operations that include heavily armed, violent individuals, motivated by profit, carrying out abuse of vulnerable victims.'
Source: Mail Online
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