A man is facing charges after allegedly holding his wife hostage for 10 years and brutally beating her.
Peter Lizon, of Leroy, W.Va., is charged with malicious wounding.
According to the criminal complaint, a woman staying at the Family Crisis Intervention Center in Parkersburg had met a woman that was brutally beaten by her husband and reported it to authorities.
The woman, in an interview with investigators, described meeting Lizon's wife while staying at the shelter in Parkersburg. She described his wife as "gaunt and filthy," and told investigators that she spent the entire night talking with Lizon's wife during her stay.
During the conversation, according to the criminal complaint, Lizon's wife told the woman that her husband had kept her chained up with metal padlocks and chains for about 10 years. The woman noticed scar tissue on the victim's hands and ankles. Lizon's wife told the woman that the scars were from the chains tearing into her skin.
Lizon's wife told the woman that she and her husband were originally from Czechoslovakia, and that they live in Leroy, W.Va.
According to the complaint, the woman told investigators that the feet of Lizon's wife were "mutilated and swollen," one of which was missing a considerable amount of skin. Lizon's wife told the woman that her husband smashed her foot with a bucket or scoop attachment of a farm tractor.
Lizon's wife also told the woman Lizon called her his "slave," and that whenever her husband entered the room she had to kneel down before him, according to the complaint.
During the conversation, the woman began to try to medicate and bandage the victim's wounds, when she noticed severe burns on her breasts and back. According to the complaint, Lizon's wife told the woman her husband used a hot frying pan to burn her.
According to the complaint, Lizon's wife also told the woman of a prior pregnancy during which her husband hit her in the stomach and caused a miscarriage. Lizon's wife described the child to the woman as a fully developed baby -- that they then buried on their farm.
Lizon's wife also told the woman that she had a one-year-old child. According to the criminal complaint, that child was delivered by Lizon while his wife was bound by chains. Neither Lizon's wife or the child received any medical attention since birth.
The woman told investigators that the victim's fingers all looked crooked. According to the complaint, Lizon's wife told the woman that her husband had broken her fingers.
After investigators finished the interview with the woman they were able to obtain a warrant to gain more information from the shelter in which the women stayed. According to the complaint, 45 photos were turned over to investigators showing the injuries that had been described to them.
On July 2, according to the complaint, Lizon took his wife and their child to return a roto-tiller attachment that he had rented from a local store. While returning the equipment, Lizon's wife was able to walk away from the truck and hide in a local Zumba dance facility. Lizon left with their child and his wife was able to find a ride to the shelter in Parkersburg.
Investigators were then able to obtain a search warrant for the couples home from which the confiscated a Sunbeam clothing iron from a bathroom vanity cabinet.
Lizon is being held in the South Central Regional Jail in lieu of $300,000 bail.
