Woman Linked to Stuart Case

BOSTON--Charles Stuart reportedly was called numerous times by a woman using his credit card while he was hospitalized, leading investigators to add romance to the list of possible motives in the killing of his pregnant wife that has become a national crime drama.

Authorities also have sought genetic tests to determine if the child that was born to Carol Stuart and died as a result of the shooting might not have been fathered by Stuart. And they continue seeking insurance policies as other motives.

Meanwhile, there were no results in the fourth day of the search for the gun yesterday. Matthew Stuart, 23, has said his brother passed him the gun and his wife's purse the night of the shootings and that he later threw them separately into the Pines River in Revere. The bag has been recovered.

Stuart, 29, committed suicide Thursday after Matthew told authorities his brother planned the murder of his wife, Carol. She was shot and killed Oct. 23 after the couple left a birthing class, and her infant son, born by Caesarean section, died 17 days later.

Stuart, who was shot in the stomach, provided a description of a Black assailant, and the crime riveted the nation as a chilling example of urban violence. The drama was bolstered by transcripts of Stuart's dramatic calls for help on his car phone.

Police have questioned a woman who worked with Stuart at Edward F. Kakas & Sons, a fur shop on Newbury Street where Charles was manager, the Boston Globe reported yesterday. In a search of Stuart's Reading home, police reportedly found telephone bills that indicate she had been using his credit card to call him at the hospital. They also are looking into a brooch he recently bought.

The Suffolk County District Attorney's office also has sent blood samples to a lab for DNA testing which would establish the parenthood of the child. Results will take at least three weeks, said Dr. Gerald Fegin of the state Medical Examiner's office.

Police also are investigating Stuart's actions on Tuesday, when he bought a new car and a $250 14-carat gold brooch at Marco Jewelers in Peabody. Police are trying to determine if the jewelry was a present for the woman, according to the Globe.

John White, the jewelry store manager, said he was surprised by Stuart's demeanor while making the purchase.

"He didn't express any grief. None at all. That struck everyone as funny," White said.

The woman was said to be a Brown University graduate now in graduate school, and to have worked at Kakas for the last two summers.

In October, the woman was questioned by police and had said she and her boyfriend had socialized with Stuart and his wife.

Police also are looking for insurance policies. Stuart has collected $82,000 on an insurance policy due his wife for her work as an attorney. A search of the couple's Reading home has turned up another $100,000 policy on her.

Reading police said authorities also found credit cards that Stuart had reported stolen.

The Boston Herald has reported that another man was in the car with Matthew when Charles tossed the bag into the car. The man has denied any involvement in the Mission Hill incident but said he did know the Stuarts.