ben simono has more on the investigation. >> reporter: the steel door on the long shore avenue alley led to a basement, but the police say the room barely high enough to stand in was a prison. >> we get in the basement, the subbasement, this is what we find, four mentally challenged adults. >> reporter: inside the room, measuring 15 feet by 15 feet, the size of a bedroom, police say they found four malnourished mentally handicapped adults in prison. police say they were in their 40s but had the mental capacity of children. >> that's the thing that is heart breaking to me, that somebody would have to suffer or individuals would have to suffer that indignity. >> reporter: police blocked off the building for the investigation. the tenants were allowed to come and go. rob hoey lived here for seven months and can't believe what he's hearing. >> it is crazy that somebody in real life can do something like this. this is stuff you see in movies. >> reporter: the apartment building is registered to target gaz lovelli. he owns properties in other parts of the city as well. >> there is no way t