Day 4 of searching the landfill for the remains of the missing Chatham Co. toddler
CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - For a fourth straight day, investigators say they were tirelessly searching a landfill for the body of a missing Chatham County toddler, 20-month-old Quinton Simon.
The Chatham County Police Department said the landfill search team has now gone through literal tons of trash. Crews will pause their search for the weekend and start back up Monday.
The department tweeted a thread of updates on Friday. The tweets included pictures showing crews sifting through garbage. The department mentioned the hazards that crews searching in the landfill face.
The department said the investigative team will spend Saturday and Sunday conducting interviews and analyzing evidence that has been gathered so far in the case.
Quinton was reported missing on Oct. 5. His mother is the only suspect in the case, according to police.
Police hoped to find him alive, but they say evidence lets them know, not only is he dead, but his body was thrown in a dumpster and ended up at this landfill. That fact alone has many outraged with what Quinton must’ve gone through.
“Very angry that baby was, not only was he killed, but he was placed in garbage like he was trash, like his life did not mean nothing. I just, I don’t know. That’s a real hard thing to digest,” Chatham County resident Christy Wiley said.
Meanwhile, at Quinton’s home, a memorial has been set up for days that continues to grow with more teddy bears and balloons as days go by. A sign from loved ones now hangs on the memorial saying they are beyond grateful for the support shown throughout this time of grief. A bible verse is also on the banner.
Quinton’s mother, Leilani Simon still hasn’t been arrested. Law enforcement has reiterated they are waiting until they have everything they need to make an arrest to be certain they don’t jeopardize the case.
As this search could go on for weeks, CCPD will be putting $250,000 towards the search, which was approved by Chatham County Commission today. The money comes from school speed zone camera funds.
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