OAN Staff Abril Elfi 
1:33 PM – Thursday, July 24, 2025

Seven people have been arrested after at least 10 children, as young as 2 years old, were held captive in an Alabama storm bunker for three years and sexually tortured through the use of tools like animal shock collars as part of a sex-trafficking ring.

According to Bibb County Sheriff Jody Wade, seven suspects have been arrested as part of the roundup of the ring, including three family members and two mothers whose children were also trapped and abused in the basement.

“I know God’s forgiveness is boundless, but if there is a limit, we’ve reached it,” Wade said. 

The suspects have been identified as Rebecca Brewer, 29, Sara Louise Terrell, 41, Ricky Terrell, 44, Dalton Terrell, 21, William Chase McElroy, 21, Andres Velazquez-Trejo, 29, and Timothy St. John, 23. 

All of the suspects are currently facing a list of charges ranging from sodomy and rape to sexual torture and human trafficking.

According to investigators, all the suspects played a specific role in the ring. 

Bibb County Assistant District Attorney Bryan Jones said Velazquez-Trejo would allegedly drug the victims by putting a white powder in their drinks before bringing in clients who would pay up to $1,000 to have sex with them. 

He continued stating that the children would be tied up during the act, often to the limited furniture in the room, including a grimy mattress, a chair, and a support pole.

Jones said that two of the victims were forced to perform sexual acts on each other and told authorities that McElroy was the one who had both taught them the process and performed it on them himself. 

According to public court documents, Sara Louise Terrell allegedly placed animal shock collars on the children, which the suspects would use on the victim’s genitals as a form of punishment and self-serving sexual gratification.

Wade stated that the victims included both her children and Velazquez-Trejo and Brewer’s three children. Brewer also has a fourth child from a separate relationship.

Authorities stated that it is unclear how many children belonging to Sara Louise Terrell were involved, or who their fathers were.

Court records stated that other suspects arrested were allegedly responsible for selling and purchasing the children, and Velazquez-Trejo would additionally sell nude pictures of the victims.

Wade stated that “there’s no telling” how many additional victims there could be in the larger trafficking operation as the investigation proceeds in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security.

The Alabama Department of Human Resources has taken custody of all the victims and is providing them with counseling services.

“No child deserves this, the power and control of it, the stealing the innocence of a child and the horrible victimization they went through with these monsters,” Wade said. “Some of the older children will carry this vividly for the rest of their lives. You can’t heal from this, but you can move on as best you can.”

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