1 of 3 | Linda Ann Weston courtesy of Philadelphia the Police Department.
PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 18 (UPI) -- A runaway Florida teen was found in Philadelphia with three people charged with imprisoning and stealing from mentally disabled adults, police said.
Benita Rodriguez, 15, left her home in West Palm Beach to join her boyfriend, Gregory Thomas Jr., in Philadelphia, WPVI-TV in Philadelphia reported. Thomas' father is one of the people charged with kidnapping and imprisoning the four victims discovered in a sub-basement in Philadelphia. Investigators said they were unsure if Rodriguez knew what was going on.
Seven children were also in the house, neighbors told West Palm Beach's WPBF-TV.
Gregory Thomas Sr., 47, and his girlfriend, Linda Weston, 51, who both formerly lived in West Palm Beach, and Eddie Wright, 49, are charged with criminal conspiracy, aggravated criminal assault, kidnapping, unlawful restraint and related offenses.
Lt. Ray Evers of the Philadelphia police said Weston had identification records for as many as 50 people in her possession when arrested, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Tuesday. They suggest Weston was running a wide-ranging fraud operation, Evers said.
Investigators expect more charges will be filed as they piece together a timeline for an operation that allegedly took place in several states.
"She might have been doing this for years, probably since she got out of prison," Evers said.
Weston served eight years in prison for killing a 25-year-old man who starved to death in her North Philadelphia apartment in 1981.
Authorities said it is not known how Weston got in contact with the four chained and malnourished adults found Saturday by Weston's landlord or how she allegedly managed to start collecting their Social Security checks.
Two of the victims were from Philadelphia and one of the men is believed to be from North Carolina. The four were placed in the care of mental health officials, police said.
Evers said authorities don't know yet how long the four were held captive.
"I think it will be some time before this all comes out," he said.
