Philadelphia ( CNN ) -- A mentally disabled man testified Monday he was once kept in a closet that was nailed shut by a woman at the helm of an alleged fraud and abuse scheme . Edwin Sanabria , 31 , also said he did not receive his Social Security checks once he began living with Linda Weston in 2001 . Sanabria testified at the preliminary hearing for Weston , 51 , Gregory Thomas , 47 , Eddie Wright , 49 , and Jean McIntosh , 32 . All four are facing charges including kidnapping , aggravated assault , criminal conspiracy and false imprisonment for holding four people in the sub-basement of a Philadelphia apartment building . McIntosh , the daughter of Weston , the alleged ringleader , remained animated throughout the hearing , shaking her head , whispering with her attorney and breaking down into tears during Sanabria 's testimony . The four mentally disabled adults held captive -- Sanabria , Herbert Knowles , Tamara Breeden and Derwin McLemire -- were found in October locked in the sub-basement room with no food and only a bucket for a toilet . The pitch-black , 13-by-7 foot space houses what police described as a former boiler used to heat the building . A penetrating stench of urine and feces still hung in the chamber days after the discovery . McLemire had been chained to the boiler , police said . `` I used the bucket to go to the bathroom . Others used the same bucket , '' Sanabria testified Monday , pointing to an enlarged photo of the sub-basement . When asked where he took a bath , he said they `` used the same bucket we used to urinate in . '' Sanabria said he and the others were in the basement for 10 days . He said he traveled to Philadelphia with Weston from West Palm Beach , Florida . Prosecutors showed a number of photos of the alleged victims covered in various scars , scabs and lacerations after their discovery . All appeared extremely malnourished . Police Officer John Murphy testified about discovering the victims and leading them out after the building 's landlord cut McLemire 's chain . `` The stench in the room and on their person was unbearable , '' Murphy said . When asked to describe the smell in the basement , he said , `` Basically , death . '' He added that McLemire 's chain was barely hanging on him because he was so thin . All four defendants appeared in court . Weston , who remained expressionless during the daylong hearing , wore her orange prison jumpsuit . The others wore street clothes , and McIntosh wore a hijab , or Muslim head covering . Crime scene police Officer John Tuggart testified the alleged victims had 21.5 square feet per person of living space while in the sub-basement . He described the sound of the door to the sub-basement closing as being `` like a meat locker , the way it rattles and shuts . '' Tuggart added that the victims `` seemed relieved to be somewhere they were being taken care of '' at the hospital where they received treatment . The suspects also face charges including assault , terrorist threats , neglect of a care-dependent person and theft by deception . Weston served prison time in the 1980s for killing her sister 's boyfriend by locking him in a closet and refusing to feed him . Court documents show Bernardo Ramos , 25 , was fed only four times while locked in the closet over the two-month period . He died in 1981 , at which point he weighed less than 75 pounds . His body was found in an abandoned building after it was wheeled there in a baby carriage , according to the documents . The defendants will return to court Tuesday .
Edwin Sanabria says he and three others were kept in a sub-basement for 10 days . Four suspects face a laundry list of charges in the case . A police officer testifies the sub-basement smelled like `` death ''