A woman in Fargo, North Dakota, has been rescued after telling police she was chained to a bed for two years and beaten and sexually assaulted by her ex-husband and his girlfriend.

Officers were called to an apartment complex on Tuesday after a maintenance worker heard cries for help coming from one of the units. Inside a bedroom, police found the woman anchored to a bedframe by a heavy chain and a padlock around her right ankle, according to court documents.

The woman told officers she had been brought to Fargo from Mexico in 2024 by her ex-husband, 40-year-old Arturo Calzada Becerril, and had not been outside for two years. She said a security camera was pointed at her bed and the bedroom windows were covered in tin foil. She was fed twice a day, the New York Post reported.

She said Calzada Becerril and his girlfriend, 41-year-old Erendira Amoles, had beaten and sexually assaulted her. Prosecutors allege the pair kept the woman, who is a US citizen, captive so that Calzada Becerril could use her to help his immigration status.

Pair charged and held in county jail

Calzada Becerril and Amoles were arrested on kidnapping and assault charges and booked into the Cass County Jail. They were arraigned on Friday morning, according to local reports.

The woman was taken to hospital after she was found. Police said the maintenance worker's report of muffled screams led building management to call emergency services, and officers then forced entry to the apartment.

The case remains before the courts. Both suspects have been charged but not convicted, and the allegations against them have not yet been tested at trial.