PHILADELPHIA ? An initial court hearing is scheduled Wednesday for the fourth defendant in an alleged Social Security fraud case in which police say mentally disabled people were held captive in a squalid basement.
Jean McIntosh, 32, is the daughter of the plot's alleged ringleader, Linda Ann Weston, 51.
McIntosh is scheduled for her initial hearing before Municipal Judge Felice Rowley Stack. Messages left for her attorney have not been returned and it could not immediately be determined if McIntosh would be in court for the hearing.
The other three defendants ? Weston, Weston's boyfriend Gregory Thomas, 47, and Eddie "the Rev. Ed" Wright, 50 ? had their initial appearance Monday, when Stack scheduled a Dec. 19 preliminary hearing.
None of the defendants have entered pleas, and the other three defendants did not appear in court. All four are charged with kidnapping, assault, false imprisonment and other counts.
The victims, who authorities say have the mental capacity of 10-year-olds, were discovered by a landlord at a Philadelphia apartment building on Oct. 15. They were malnourished and one was chained to a boiler, police said.
Investigators are working to discover the extent of the alleged scheme after finding more than 50 Social Security cards, power of attorney documents and other such forms. The suspects may have been taking in the downtrodden and disabled for their Social Security checks, then holding them captive in wretched conditions without enough to eat or drink, according to authorities.
Eight children and four young adults linked to the defendants were taken into protective custody, and DNA tests are being conducted to determine the children's identities.
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