Stewart Weldon
Springfield, MA — Stewart Weldon, a 40-year old man from Massachussetts, was chased by police for driving a car with a broken tail light. But when police became suspicious and searched his home, they found the dead bodies of three women. He has since been charged with kidnapping and a lot more.
“It’s tragic. It’s awful. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” Hampden County District Attorney Anthony Gulluni said at a press conference confirming that three women were found dead at his house.
The victims were identified as Ernestine Ryans, 47-years old from Springfield, America Lyden, 34 years old from Springfield, and Kayla Escalante, 27-years old from Ludlow. The cause of their death hasn’t been established yet but Gulluni said it is considered suspicious.
The incident started when Weldon was pulled over for a broken taillight. Weldon fled but eventually crashed into a police cruiser where he struggled with the police but was arrested.
A wounded woman was with Weldon at the time and thanked the police for saving her life, tearfully saying, “He’s going to kill me.”
Further investigation led the police to his house that is registered to her mother based on property records. Two bodies were initially found in the house and another one was found later on. Two of the three were reported missing some time ago and was investigated thoroughly but wasn’t solved.
Last week, Weldon was indicted on charges of kidnapping, threat to commit a crime, carrying a dangerous weapon, and resisting arrest. He pleaded not guilty through his lawyer in Springfield District Court to additional charges of kidnapping and assault with intent to commit a rape. He hasn’t been charged yet in relation to the discovered bodies.
The two kidnapping charges are from separate cases. The judge set the bail at $1 million for the new charges, aside from the $1 million from last week.
According to court documents, the woman in the car with Weldon, who is his acquaintance, has been held captive for a month already and he raped her several times.
Police recovered two knives from Weldon’s pocket. The woman suffered several stab wounds, marks from being hit with a blunt object, and a fractured jaw. She said Weldon hit her with a hammer. The woman was rushed to the hospital and is now recovering.
Meanwhile, the investigations in Weldon’s house is still ongoing, with authorities using ground penetrating technology to “intensely” search the property. The Department of Children and Families in Massachusetts said that a child was taken from the home but didn’t provide any information about the child.
Weldon had three active warrants and a revoked driver’s license at the time of the arrest. He was charged with breaking and entering in 2012 and assault with a dangerous weapon in 2008 and 2012, according to Massachusetts Criminal Offender Record Information. He was also previously charged with burglary, two counts of burglary, and theft in New Jersey.