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Florida Man Charged With Murder After Body Of Girlfriend Found In Trunk Of Car

By Angelica N. Sumter
Published on: 19:06 PST, May 25, 2016

Kydel Weldon, 44, of Tampa, Florida was arrested and charged with murder after the body of his girlfriend was found inside the trunk of his car, according to WFLA. On Tuesday, May 24, Hillsborough County police officials arrived at a home on 6801 Thrasher Drive after receiving an emergency call.

It was reported that the homeowner – whose name has not been released – called 911 after he “discovered blood throughout the residence” as well as in the driveway when he returned home from work. The homeowner became worried when he was “unable to locate two of the occupants that rented a room from him inside that location,” said Donna Lusczynski, who is with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

When responding deputies arrived at the home, the homeowner gave them descriptions of the missing occupants — Weldon and 45-year-old Tina Ryan — and gave information on where they usually hang out. At approximately 10 p.m., deputies came across one of the roommates, who was located on Columbus Avenue.

When Hillsborough police officials approached Weldon, it was stated that he appeared to have blood on his hands and clothing, prompting officers to search his vehicle which was “located at a business called Labor Ready on 5701 E. Columbus Dr.”

After rummaging through Weldon’s vehicle, they made their way to the trunk of his car, where they discovered the body of a female, according to FOX 13 News. It was soon discovered that the body found in the trunk of Weldon’s car belonged to his girlfriend, Tina Ryan.

Weldon was arrested at the scene and charged with second-degree murder.

Although the cause of death has not been confirmed, as police officials are awaiting autopsy results, they stated that they “do know that the victim did suffer from blunt trauma to her head as well as multiple stab wounds to her upper body.”

President of the East Lake Park Civic Association Carol McLemore said, “It’s unfortunate that we live in this time and age, that these kind of things happen and, of course, we are all very concerned because we are a tight-knit community.”

Neighbor Joanne O’Brien said, “When you just talk to somebody and something like this happens… you think, ‘What could I have done to help her? I’m feeling kind of shaky about this. Is there something I could have done to help her?’ Because she didn’t want to go home because she was arguing with her man friend is what she told me. So, I’m kind of freaked out by it.”

Sources say Weldon and Ryan were in a relationship and were known to fight a lot. One neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous, told reporters that she had a gut feeling that their relationship would end in murder. She stated that “there was a lot of fighting. A lot of yelling and chaos.”

The homeowner stated that the reason why he allowed Ryan and Weldon to rent a room in his home was because he was going through tough times. His “house was in foreclosure and he needed the rent money.”

The victim’s family were stunned after learning that Ryan’s body was found inside the trunk of her boyfriend’s car, stating that they wished that she had “dumped him before it was too late.” Ryan’s brother-in-law Ronald Keith said, “It’s just horrible because she was a very good person, but she just hit a very bad patch.”

“I was very fearful that this sort of thing could happen to her, and it did unfortunately. I’m just glad she’s at peace now and of course, she’s in a much better place.”

Kydel Weldon is currently being held at the county jail on second-degree murder charges without bail.

[Image via Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office]

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