The grandmother of slain toddler Quinton Simon has been arrested – just weeks after the little boy’s remains were found dumped in a landfill and his mother was charged with his murder.
Billie Jo Howell, who also uses the last name Betterton, was arrested on a charge of contempt of court on Monday, according to online jail records from Chatham County Sheriff’s Department.
The 45-year-old grandmother was booked into Chatham County jail on no bond and was placed in an suicide-prevention smock, reported local outlet WJCL.
The details of the arrest are unclear but the charges are not believed to be related to her 20-month-old grandson’s disappearance and death.
Instead, records show that she was taken into custody as a result of a hold placed by Chatham County juvenile court. The juvenile court records are sealed.
Ms Howell had custody of Quinton and his older brother at the time of his disappearance and she had recently filed to have her daughter Leilani Simon – Quinton’s mother – evicted from her home.
It was also Ms Howell who reportedly tipped off authorities about her daughter – leading to her arrest on murder charges.
Quinton was last seen alive on the morning of 5 October when he was playing in a playpen in a home in Savannah that he shared with his mother, her boyfriend, his grandparents and siblings.
Ms Simon, 22, reported her son missing hours later claiming that she woke up to find her son gone and that she believed someone had entered the house and snatched him.
A huge search was launched to try to find the missing child and investigators spent 30 days trawling through trash at a nearby landfill.
While her son’s whereabouts were still unknown, Ms Simon was spotted drinking tequila at a bar with her mother.
On 18 November – more than a month on from his disappearance – Quinton’s remains were discovered at the landfill.
Three days later, Ms Simon was arrested and charged with malice murder, concealing the death of another person, and other charges.
Following her arrest, Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley said that she had been “the sole suspect” since the start of the case and that authorities did not believe anyone else was involved.
Ms Howell’s friend told WTOC-TV that the little boy’s grandmother had been in contact with the FBI throughout the investigation and had tipped officials off when her daughter checked herself out of a treatment centre in the weeks after Quinton’s disappearance.
The friend claimed that, at the request of law enforcement, Ms Howell helped them buy some time before they took her daughter into custody.
Ms Simon has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
