10 Most Evil Parents

10 Evil Parents Who Imprisoned Their Own Children

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today were examining our picks for the most shocking cases of evil biological and adoptive parents who isolated and locked up their own children.

Charles Bothuell IV & Monique Dillard-Bothuell

In 2014, Charles Bothuell V was living with his father, Bothuell IV, and stepmother, Dillard-Bothuell, in Detroit, Michigan, when his parents reported him missing. For 11 days, the country was gripped by the story, resulting in the dad being interviewed live on Nancy Grace. However, during this discussion, the host dropped the news that his son had been found alive. Young Charles, with signs of trauma, was discovered in the familys basement. In 2015, Bothuell IV and Dillard-Bothuell were arrested and charged. In 2016, as part of a deal to avoid more serious charges, Bothuell IV pleaded guilty to lesser crimes, receiving 18 months of probation and losing custody of Charles. Dillard-Bothuell also accepted a plea, but the details were kept secret.

Louise Monnier

Born into a wealthy family, Blanche Mannier was a socialite in Poitiers, France. In 1876, aged 27, she told her mother, Louise, that she planned to marry Victor Calmiel. However, Louise hated this idea. So, she locked her daughter in the attic of the family home. In 1901, the police received an anonymous letter that someone was imprisoned in the Monnier home. When they arrived, they were greeted with a terrible sight. Blanche, now aged 52, had lived in an impoverished state for 25 years, resulting in her weighing only around 55 pounds. 15 days after her arrest, Louise died. Blanches brother, Marcel, was convicted for her imprisonment, but it was later overturned. Blanche struggled for the rest of her life, passing away in 1913.

Benjamin & Christina Cotton

In 2022, the authorities arrived at the Cotton household in Red Wing, Minnesota, after reports of their four children being in danger. When they asked Christina about the allegations, she showed the officials the cages the kids were locked inside, which she claimed was done for their safety. However, the investigation found this wasnt true, as the couple subjected the children to physical punishment. Christina also claimed this only happened at night, despite the officials being there in the morning and the investigation finding the kids had been locked up for at least 13 hours. In 2024, as part of a plea deal, Benjamin and Christina pleaded guilty to their crimes. They both received 4 years in jail.

Clark Wiley

In 1970, after years of mistreatment, with Wiley out of the house, his wife met with a social worker to get disability benefits, taking her daughter Genie with her. However, when the worker saw the severely malnourished teenager, the authorities were called. Wiley had controlled the family, isolated them, and attacked them whenever they made noise. Hed locked Genie up in a room, even strapping her to furniture, for years. As such, her socialization skills were severely lacking, leaving her in a near-feral state. Rather than face punishment, Wiley took his own life. Genie was heavily studied by researchers, causing controversy, as she was placed in many foster homes. In 2016, it was reported she was still in state care.

Jürgen Bartsch's Adoptive Mother

After his mother died, Bartsch was taken in by a couple in Velbert, Germany, later being formally adopted in 1954. However, his childhood was terrible. In his early childhood, Bartsch was imprisoned by his adopted mother in a dark basement. She, as well as isolating him, was obsessed with cleanliness, resulting in her bathing him well into his teens. When Bartsch was in his mid-teens, he began taking the lives of boys. In 1966, his fifth victim escaped and alerted the police. In 1967, Bartsch was sentenced to life imprisonment, which was later changed to 10 years of juvenile detention followed by treatment in a psychiatric hospital. To control his violent urges, Bartsch requested castration. However, a complication from the anesthetic cost him his life in 1976.

Klara Mauerova

When a man in Kuim, Czechia, installed a baby monitor to watch his daughter, he was in for a shock. The device picked up a signal from his neighbor Mauerova that depicted the shocking state of her children. The young brothers were kept locked up and sustained terrible treatment. Reportedly, it was due to a cult that their mother was involved in. However, shortly after the authorities arrived, Barbora krlová, who was involved, had vanished. It soon emerged that the 33-year-old was in Norway pretending to be a 13-year-old at school. Shed escaped there to avoid arrest but was eventually discovered and brought back. In 2008, Mauerova was sentenced to nine years, as another five members were also jailed.

Marcus Wesson

After leaving the military, Wesson soon descended into an authoritative monster. He married one woman and then her teenage daughter, Elizabeth. The two had 10 children together. Wesson was controlling, believing God was talking to him. So, he homeschooled the children with his twisted version of Christianity, subjecting them to horrible treatment, as he stopped Elizabeth from raising them. Her own sister even left seven children with them, not knowing the circumstances. In 2004, after Wesson planned to move to another house, extended family and police approached the Fresno, California, property and demanded the kids. However, when Wesson went back into the house, he murdered nine relatives inside. He soon gave himself up. In 2005, Wesson was sentenced to death.

Jeanne Kay Whitefeather & Donald Lantz

In 2023, the police arrived at a farm in Sissonville, West Virginia, after someone called with concerns over child welfare. The property belonged to White couple Whitefeather and Lantz, who had five adopted Black children. When the cops arrived, they found two of the kids locked in a shed, which the couple had named the Teenage Clubhouse, without water or adequate care. Another was found imprisoned in the loft. All of the kids had been forced to work on the property, with punishment being a regular occurrence. In 2025, Whitefeather and Lantz were found guilty of several charges, including human trafficking and child neglect. Whitefeather was sentenced to 215 years, and Lantz received 160 years.

David & Louise Turpin

In 2018, Jordan Turpin escaped from her parents house in Perris, California, and alerted the authorities about what had been going on. When the cops arrived, they found signs of mistreatment and neglect on the 13 children, including finding one child shackled to a bed and signs of recent restraints on others. David and Louise would let the kids out occasionally, especially when trips to Disneyland were involved. Yet, the majority of the time, they were isolated. The duo hid their dark parenting from relatives with happy posts on social media. In 2019, after pleading guilty to 14 charges, they were sentenced to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after 25 years, which theyre unlikely to get.

Josef Fritzl

In 2008, after he brought in a boy with kidney failure, Fritzls story on where the childs mother was made the hospital staff suspicious. A week later, when he brought Elisabeth, the hospital called the police, who arrested them. Then, Elisabeths tale came to light. She was Fritzls daughter and had been held captive in the basement of his house in Amstetten, Austria, since 1984. He then lied to everyone, claiming shed run away and joined a cult. All the while, he subjected her to horrible treatment, fathering seven children. Fritzl took some to live upstairs with his wife, convincing her Elisabeth had left the kids with them. In 2009, after changing his plea to guilty following Elisabeths testimony, Fritzl was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Are there any other cases that we missed involving evil parents imprisoning their children? Let us know in the comments.