Three people were arrested over the weekend for holding four mentally disabled adults captive in a Philadelphia apartment’s basement as part of a Social Security fraud scheme. Twelve children and teens were taken into protective custody near the Tacony neighborhood’s apartment building Tuesday night, The Associated Press reported.

Police arrested Linda Ann Weston, 51, Thomas Gregory, 47, Eddie Wright, 49 and Weston’s daughter Jean McIntosh, 32. Weston is the alleged ringleader. The four were charged with kidnapping and false imprisonment among other charges.

The victims were found Saturday morning and identified as Derwin McLemire, 41, of North Carolina; Herbert Knowles, 40, of Virginia; and Tamara Breeden, 29, and Edwin Sanabria, 31, both of Philadelphia, according to the AP.

The 12 youth all have ties to the case and range in age from 2 to 19, according to Fox News. Two of the children are Breeden’s children. Breeden was reported missing from Philadelphia. Her case was marked “closed” last year.

The AP reported that Knowles was reported missing from Norfolk, Va., in 2008.

The Philadelphia Police Department requested the public’s help in finding Knowles’ family.

Landlord Turgut Gozleveli discovered the malnourished victims in a scene described as a dungeon after he heard dogs barking in the basement, the AP reported. The door to a room was chained shut. Gozleveli managed to get inside and found the victims. One man was chained to a boiler.

Police said Weston is believed to have stolen the victims’ Social Security disability checks. Dozens of other Social Security and identification cards were found in McIntosh’s apartment. Police are investigating whether the group was trafficking people to Philadelphia.

According to ABC, Weston previously served eight years in prison for locking a man in a closet until he died of starvation.

 

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