Overview

• Police say the four victims included a married couple in the suspect's care and two women with whom he had intimate relationships, with one woman reporting confinement since 2015.
• The case surfaced after officers responded to a July 25 unattended-death call at a Churchill Drive residence, and the coroner is still working to determine the cause of death.
• Donnie Ray Birchfield Jr. faces 16 charges, including exploitation of a vulnerable adult, false imprisonment, aggravated domestic violence, abuse of a vulnerable adult, and multiple financial crimes, and he is held on a $150,000 bond.
• Investigators allege Birchfield controlled victims' food, bathroom access and communication, choked one woman until she lost consciousness, and used victims' bank and card accounts to make purchases and pay his credit card since September 2022.
• A rescued man with a developmental disability was described by his sister as severely emaciated, while Birchfield's attorney says he maintains his innocence as the investigation continues and more charges remain possible.