Mom of 10 Held Woman Captive in Her Home for Over 20 Years, Forced Her to Work as ‘House Slave’ from Age 16: ‘Unimaginable Cruelty’

A woman in England has been found guilty of modern-day slavery offenses after keeping a victim captive in her home for more than 20 years, authorities have said.

On Wednesday, Jan. 21, Amanda Wixon, 56, was convicted by a jury at Gloucestershire Crown Court of two counts of forced or compulsory labour, one count of false imprisonment and three counts of assault, per a Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) news release obtained by PEOPLE.

“During her more than 20-year imprisonment, the victim was repeatedly beaten while being forced to clean and sweep the floors of Wixon’s home and get her children ready for school,” the release stated.

The victim worked as a “house slave” for Wixon and her 10 children, Sky News reported, citing the court hearing.

Gloucestershire Constabulary said in a separate news release posted on Facebook that “Wixon was found guilty of [modern-day] slavery [offenses]” following an investigation by the police team’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID). Police released chilling images on Facebook showing the squalid conditions the victim had been made to live in.

The victim, who is now in her 40s and has learning difficulties, moved into Wixon’s family home in 1996 after the suspect “assumed responsibility” for her, police said.

The victim was 16 years old when she moved into Wixon’s property, per The Times.

“For more than two decades Wixon kept the victim in squalid conditions; locking her in the house and depriving her of food, health and dental care,” the police release said, adding that Wixon had also “deprived” the victim of money.

“Despite claiming benefits for the victim since 2000, which were paid into Wixon’s bank account, the victim was forced to live in poverty and wear hand-me-down clothes,” police said.

The victim was “exploited” and forced to “complete work around the house under the threat of violence,” the jury learned, per the police release. It added that the victim “was made to spend hours on her knees each day” doing the chores.

“Wixon forbade the victim from washing herself, but she was made to bathe the children and run baths for Wixon,” the release stated. “She would allow the victim to have one meal a day, usually leftover food or scraps, and the victim would often hide sweet foods to eat in secret if she got hungry.”

“Those threats of violence were accompanied by actual violence with Wixon regularly beating the victim if she did not complete the jobs around the home,” police added.

Officers said that between January 1997 and March 2021, the victim claimed that Wixon had strangled her, as well as putting her head down the toilet and pouring cleaning fluids on her face and down her throat.

“Wixon also stamped on the victim and hit her in the face with a broom handle, causing her to lose her teeth. She would also forcibly shave off the victim’s hair, despite the victim wanting it long,” the release said.

It added, “On one occasion, when Wixon discovered the victim had been given a [cell] phone, she took it from her and hit her around the face with it, giving her a black eye. She then smashed the phone with a hammer.”

On March 15, 2021, the victim finally called someone she knew for help after using another secret cell phone she’d been given, police said. The CPS added in its release that one of Wixon’s sons had called police, claiming he was concerned about the victim’s welfare, per the release obtained by PEOPLE.

“At the time of her discovery, she was malnourished, her hair had been forcibly cut, and all of her teeth had been removed,” the CPS release said.

Police said they responded to the call and attended Wixon’s address at around 10:40 p.m. local time that evening, where officers found the “frightened” and “gaunt” victim, who “smelt strongly of body [odor].”

She was then taken to see a dentist for the first time, while doctors “noted scarring around her mouth, thought to be due to contact with cleaning fluids, and calluses on her ankles, which were consistent with the victim’s account of spending hours on her knees sweeping the floor,” the release stated.

The dentist said the victim “would have been in severe pain at multiple points over the years due to infections and abscesses which were never treated,” police noted.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.   

Detective Constable Emma Jackson from Gloucestershire Police said of the case, “Wixon kept an extremely vulnerable victim captive in appalling conditions for over two decades,” adding, “Instead of caring for her, as she was supposed to, she exploited her and forced her to work in domestic servitude whilst subjecting her to the most cruel and inhumane treatment,” per the release.

“I commend the victim in this case for reaching out for help. Knowing all too well what the violent consequences would have been if she’d been caught, it was incredibly courageous of her,” the officer added, confirming that the victim “is now flourishing.”

Laura Burgess, a Senior Crown Prosecutor for the CPS, said: “Amanda Wixon subjected the victim in this case to decades of unimaginable cruelty, exploitation and control. She was denied her freedom, her dignity, and even the most basic autonomy. The progress she has made since being removed from this oppressive environment is a testament to her strength.”

Wixon has been released on bail by the court and is due to be sentenced on March 12. She’s denied the charges against her, per The Times.

The Gloucestershire Constabulary didn’t immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for additional information.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.