CLEVELAND (AFP) - Unemployed American bus driver Ariel Castro appeared in court on Thursday to face charges that he kidnapped and raped three young women and held them in his home for a decade.

The 52-year-old from Cleveland, Ohio did not enter a plea and stood with his head bowed while the court set a large bond of US two million dollars (S$2.5 million) per case, effectively ensuring that he will remain in detention.