The search continues for a missing toddler in Georgia. Twenty-month-old Quinton Simon has now been missing for six days. As more time passes, the search becomes more desperate.
Quinton was reported missing by his mother on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. He was last seen at around 6 a.m. in his playpen in the family home located in Savannah, Georgia. Quinton, his 22-year-old mother, his 3-year-old brother, his mother’s boyfriend, and his maternal grandparents all live together in his grandparents' home.
Officers are working overtime to find the boy. They are working in 18-hour shifts and have searched the home, a backyard pool, and a nearby pond. So far they have not found anything. It is not believed that there is any foul play involved in the incident.
Jeff Hadley, the Chatham County police phief, spoke about this ongoing case at a press conference on Thursday, October 6, 2022. He said, “I hope he’s still alive. We don’t have any information to believe he’s not, but statistically, we know how these cases may end up.”
Hadley added that despite statistics the police department is working under the hypothesis that the boy is still alive. He said, “We’re going to hold out hope that he’s still alive, that we can find him and bring him home safe to his parents.”
The FBI has been involved with this case since day one. They are aiding the search with K-9 teams, drones, and helicopters. They are also utilizing officers on horseback and heat-detecting technology.
Quinton’s grandparents, Billie Jo and Thomas Howell, have legal custody of him and his older brother. Billie Jo Howell told WJCL that Quinton’s mother, Leilani, “hasn’t always done the right thing. Sometimes she does really great, sometimes she doesn’t … I don’t know if I can trust her — I don’t.”
Howell got emotional talking about this difficult situation: “I just know I’m hurting and I want this baby home,” she said. “He’s my baby.”
WJCL also reports that Howell tried to evict her daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend in September 2022. A court document states, “They have damaged my property and at this point no one is living in peace.” Police have responded to the residence twice in the last two years, although details about the calls have not been released at this time.
Despite the family issues, the police and FBI are treating this as a missing persons case but have not completely ruled out abduction. Anyone with any information is asked to call the new tip line at 912-667-3134.
The Chatham County Police Department said in a statement, “Finding Quinton Simon is our highest priority, and the intensity of our work is as strong as it has been since the day of his disappearance.”
