Police return to kidnapping suspect’s home where bodies found

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Investigators brought in ground-penetrating radar and shovels to search for evidence at a kidnapping suspect’s home where three bodies had already been found.

No additional human remains were discovered at the Springfield property on Friday, but the ongoing investigation could take “days, if not longer,” Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni said.

Everyone else who lived in the home where it is believed Stewart Weldon lives, including a child, is accounted for and safe, Gulluni said. The state’s Department of Children and Families said it had taken emergency custody of a child in Weldon’s home and was investigating in collaboration with law enforcement.

Weldon, 40, has lived at the home, which is owned by his mother, for two years, public records show.

Weldon was arrested Sunday following a chase after police tried to stop him for having a broken tail light, authorities said. A woman in his car, who according to police was distraught and crying uncontrollably, said he had held her against her will for a month, sexually assaulted her and beaten her.

The woman was taken to a hospital with multiple visible injuries and remained hospitalized Friday. She is expected to survive, the district attorney said.

Weldon pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and other charges on Tuesday and was held on $1 million bail. His public defender has not returned calls for comment.

No one has been charged in connection with the discovery of the bodies, which have not been publicly identified. The bodies are in the custody of the medical examiner.

Weldon’s arrest Sunday was not his first run-in with the law.

He was convicted of burglary and theft charges in New Jersey in 2007, court documents show. In Massachusetts, he previously was charged with assault and battery, breaking and entering and robbery and spent time in jail.

Weldon was arrested three times in Springfield last year, according to police and court records, including once in October when he was accused of assaulting a woman on the street. He struggled during the arrest, according to the police report, and bit an officer on the leg. He pleaded not guilty and was released on $1,000 cash bail.