Chatham County Detention Center
On the morning of Oct. 5, Leilani Simon called the police in a panic, claiming that her toddler was missing from their Savannah home and insisting that he had been abducted. But while the 23-year-old’s claims spurred national attention and a relentless search, authorities now say that by the time Simon called the police—she had already allegedly killed Quinton Simon and thrown his body in a mobile home dumpster.
The harrowing allegations are among several revealed in Simon’s indictment on Wednesday, after a Chatham County grand jury indicted the mother on 19 charges in connection with the 20-month-old child’s October death. Last month, the toddler’s body was discovered in landfill authorities had been searching for weeks.
Among the charges detailed in an indictment obtained by The Daily Beast include malice murder, concealing the death of another, false report of a crime, and false statements to police. Simon is being held at Chatham County Detention Center and it is not immediately clear if she has retained an attorney.