‘Dear Jesus’: Milwaukee man charged with sexually assaulting, abusing, trafficking, and imprisoning girls as young as 5 for years

By Adam Rife

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    MILWAUKEE (WDJT) — A Milwaukee man is in jail, accused of committing horrific sex crimes against children for several years.

64-year-old David Boyd is charged with five felonies.

He’s accused of sexually assaulting two young girls repeatedly over the course of many years, physically abusing them when they refused to comply, and chaining them in his basement.

One girl was just eight years old when the assaults started, the other was just five.

A neighbor who lives near Boyd and knew him told us, “You never would think something like that would happen right next door to your house.”

At the time of the abuse, the two sisters were in the care of a friend of their mother’s. David Boyd was that woman’s boyfriend.

He started out by touching the girls, then it got worse.

Authorities learned of the assaults earlier this year after one of the girls told her new foster parents about them.

She met with trained forensic interviewers several times as authorities pieced together a troubling picture. At one interview, during a break, she prayed, “Please help me gain the strength that I need and help to forget this moment.”

She told authorities Boyd would get in the shower with her and force oral sex, then intercourse. He’d also force sex as she tried to sleep.

Throughout the years, she said Boyd held her at knifepoint, and cut her arms, legs, and privates, leaving scars.

And he locked her in his basement, hands chained to a pipe, with just a piece of bread to eat and standing water to drink. The complaint includes photos of the basement, the chains, and the bread.

Boyd lived in his home on 21st Street for years. But neighbors who knew him and spoke with him often say they had no idea what was happening inside.

A neighbor said, “Speaking with him frequently, his demeanor never came off like you’d think anything like that.”

Several neighbors described Boyd as cordial but standoffish. He would talk with them but not share much. And they said they saw girls at the house, but thought it was just babysitting.

A neighbor said, “My block has always been pretty quiet. It’s such a shock to see that happened right next door.”

But Boyd was not the only perpetrator.

The youngest girl said she was sold for sex to a number of men at Boyd’s house. In one incident, Boyd coordinated sex with six men. The victim said it only ended when Boyd’s daughter called for him from downstairs.

One neighbor told us off camera she would often see men entering and leaving the home.

In addition to Boyd’s house, the complaint says multiple assaults and attempted assaults occurred at his girlfriend’s home.

At one of the locations, we were told she did not live there anymore. And no one answered at the other address listed in the complaint.

After his arrest, Boyd denied all the allegations.

But one of the victims drew a diagram of the basement for authorities. The complaint said when Boyd saw the drawing, he immediately jumped up.

David Boyd’s bond was set at $100,000 when he appeared in court Sunday.

The five felony counts he’s facing carry a combined total of 172 years in prison, though more time can be added because of the ages of the victims.

Boyd is due back in court next week.

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