Ex-College Basketball Star Killed Toddler Son, Stashed Him in Freezer for Years, Cops Say
A former college basketball star allegedly killed his toddler son then stashed the body in a freezer in his garage for at least two-and-a-half years, according to Virginia authorities.
Last May, cops received a tip that a child’s corpse was being kept inside a house in Midlothian, Maj. Michael Louth of the Chesterfield County Police Department told The Daily Beast. When they searched the home, they discovered the remains of Eliel Adon Weaver, whose exact age has not been revealed but was under the age of 5 when he died, police said.
Eliel, whose parents called him Adon, was found in a bag inside a sealed plastic container in one of many freezers, tied up with twine and wrapped in adult clothing and a sheet. The smell overwhelmed the police.
A cause of death has not yet been released, but in June, the boy’s parents, Kassceen Lazane Weaver, 49, and wife Dina Dyann Weaver, 48, were arrested and charged with conspiracy to conceal a body and failing to render aid to a child. Kassceen Weaver was additionally charged with domestic assault and malicious wounding. The two were soon released on bond.
The senseless murder stunned the local community. Weeks, then months, passed. Last Friday, Kassceen Weaver was indicted on three new charges: felony murder, aggravated malicious wounding, and felony child abuse and neglect. Questions continue to swirl as to what might cause a parent to—allegedly—commit such a heinous act. And while detectives aren’t saying what Kassceen Weaver’s motive could have been, he seemed to undergo a disturbing emotional shift following an altercation with his mother as she lay dying, according to Weaver’s dad.
John Weaver hasn’t seen his son since 2012, he told The Daily Beast from his home in Illinois. In December of that year, Jacqueline Weaver, who was 69 at the time, lost her battle with brain cancer. Before she died, Kassceen traveled from Virginia to the Chicago area to see her one last time.
“When Kass came around, she had a negative reaction,” a weary-sounding Weaver said, noting that he was struggling to make heads or tails of the allegations against his middle child. “We don't know whether that was just because she was in pain, or what it was. I have no idea what happened. We didn’t understand what that negative reaction was.”
Weaver, 79, said Kassceen also became angry with him after he and Jacqueline “had words,” and she sided with her husband when Kass got upset.
“When he was at the hospital, he basically cursed me out and was up on me, and my youngest son stepped in between us,” Weaver said.
Thus began a decade of silence between Kassceen, his father, and Kassceen’s two siblings.
Kassceen’s dad now ponders the dark fate of the grandson he never had the chance to meet, who went by his middle name, allegedly at the hands of the son he also lost, albeit in a different sense.
“When I did find out [about Adon’s murder], I called my [other] son and daughter, and naturally, I was feeling bad,” Weaver explained. “It runs through any parent’s mind, ‘Did I do something wrong? What did I do?’ I always had my son’s best interests at heart, so I don’t know.”
Kassceen Weaver once had a promising basketball career ahead of him. In the 1990s, he was a key member of the University of Richmond team before going on to play professionally in the Netherlands.
“I’ve always had confidence in my game and a good work ethic,” he told the Chicago Tribune in 1995. “That could take me a long way. I think those same attributes will help me in the business world.”
After returning to the States, Weaver worked in finance. His last position was as a recruiting manager with Robert Half Finance and Accounting, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Louth, of the Chesterfield PD, would not get specific about the tip police received about Adon’s remains. Chesterfield police declined to provide the incident report from the event, telling The Daily Beast that “its release could interfere with the investigation and prosecution of this case.” However, court filings reviewed by the Richmond Times-Dispatch stated that Dina Weaver’s brother called police on May 4 and told them she was “in a domestic violence situation.”
According to the documents, Dina told cops that Kassceen had at times tied her up with an electrical cord and burned her with a curling iron. She wasn’t allowed to own a cell phone or a car, and also told her brother about her “deceased son,” who died two years earlier, the filings say. During the subsequent search of the house by police, investigators found “extensive written documents” that “showed a detailed history of grooming and manipulative behavior from Kassceen, detailing how and what Dina was allowed to do.”
A second child of unknown age and gender was taken from the home by authorities and placed in foster care.
Dina Weaver bought the home in 1999. John Weaver told The Daily Beast that he only met Kassceen’s wife a handful of times before his son cut off all contact. “When my wife was living, they did come to visit once or twice and that was the extent of it,” Weaver said. “We never got close to Dina, it was like they were on an island or something. My wife made a comment like, ‘What is it? Do they think that we’re going to eat her up or something?’ It was like he didn’t want to leave Dina alone with me and my wife.”
Dina, who worked as a pharmacist at Rite Aid, was “often” seen around the neighborhood with a black eye, a resident of their development told local ABC affiliate WRIC. Kassceen appeared controlling, and drove Dina to her job and picked her up when she was done, another neighbor told the outlet.
“We’re all feeling a sense of guilt for not reaching out to Dina,” a third neighbor told WTVR, the local CBS affiliate. “What did we not know? How could we have helped her?”
Dina Weaver is reportedly living with her brother in Connecticut while awaiting trial. Kassceen Weaver remains jailed without bond. His attorney, Ali Amirshahi, did not respond to a request for comment.
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