Cleveland 19 News
CLEVELAND, OH (WOIO) -
It was the crime that sent shock waves through the city of Cleveland and across the country.
Believe it or not, it's been close to 10 years since 11 bodies were found in and around the Imperial Avenue home of convicted serial killer Anthony Sowell.
A new documentary called "Unseen," produced and directed by local filmmaker Laura Paglin, tells the story of what was uncovered in October of 2009 through the voices of the women who survived the grips of Sowell.
Vanessa Gay was able to get away.
"When we got to his house, you step in, and you could feel, you know, just an eerie feeling, and then the closer you got up the stairs, you smelled something," said Gay in the documentary. "People were saying, 'Hi' to him as we walk in, nothing to indicate that the whole night was going to be terrible."
"Unseen" filmmaker Laura Paglin spent long hours interviewing Gay and four other women who were lucky enough to escape.
Paglin's film is called "Unseen" because for so many years, no one - not even the people who lived next door - knew that a serial killer was operating inside what looked like any other house on the block.
"This was a serial killer who was not very careful. I mean he had bodies carelessly buried in the backyard, around his house. There were women jumping out of windows, screams, and people just looked the other way," said Paglin.
Paglin hopes "Unseen" will put more of a face on Sowell's victims - many of whom were dismissed because they struggled with drug addiction.
Vanessa Gay says she called police, but was told she needed to come to the station to file a report.
Police procedures have changed as a result of the Sowell case.
Click here to find out more about the documentary "Unseen."