Neighbors Heard a Woman Screaming for Help — Then Police Found Her Chained to the Floor

A woman’s desperate cries for help led police to a terrifying discovery inside a Louisville, Kentucky, home.

On August 16, 2023, neighbors heard a woman screaming and called 911. When officers arrived, they found the home’s entrance barricaded and had to use a ladder to reach a second-floor window.

Inside, they discovered the woman crying, with a chain locked around her neck and secured to the floor.

Body-camera footage later released by Louisville Metro Police captured the officers’ urgent efforts to free her. When they asked whether she knew where the key was, the woman tearfully explained that the man allegedly responsible kept it on his keychain.

Officers found a hatchet inside the home and worked to break the restraint. They eventually freed her, and she could be heard thanking the rescuers as they helped her outside.

The woman had managed to kick out a window, allowing nearby residents to hear her cries. That small act helped bring emergency responders to the scene.

Two days after the rescue, police arrested 36-year-old Moises May. Authorities said May and the woman shared a child.

He faced multiple charges, including kidnapping and assault, according to reports at the time. The allegations described in the case were not, by themselves, a determination of guilt.

The incident shocked viewers when the body-camera footage became public. It also highlighted the importance of neighbors responding when they hear someone calling for help.

In this case, the woman’s cries were heard—and people acted.

Their decision to call 911 helped bring officers to a home where a woman was waiting to be freed.