Official: Mo. Boy Guarded Fellow Captive

[gorbal]

By CHRISTOPHER LEONARD

ST. LOUIS - Abducted teen Shawn Hornbeck was ordered to guard fellow captive Ben Ownby and hide him from police when they were repeatedly left alone in their captor's apartment, an official close to the investigation told The Associated Press on Thursday.

Shawn's cooperation stemmed from the isolation and abuse he experienced in the first 30 days after he was kidnapped in 2002, said the official, who requested anonymity, citing a lack of authorization to speak publicly about the case.

Shawn, then 11 years old, was so traumatized after that first month that he began to see Michael Devlin, accused of kidnapping both boys, as his protector and surrogate parent, the official said, adding that such a reaction is common among abuse victims.

"He's a victim. He was kidnapped. He was taken from his parents. He was forced to live with this guy. He was forced to accommodate," the official said.

The official would not elaborate on what happened to Shawn when he was first kidnapped, but said details of the abuse and captivity would emerge soon in the case against Devlin. Devlin, a 41-year-old pizzeria manager, is charged with kidnapping Shawn and Ben in separate remote Missouri towns four years apart.

Link-

http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2007/02/01/ap/us/d8n17cv01.txt