Grandmother of Quinton Simon arrested in Chatham County
Billie Jo Betterton was arrested on Monday. (Chatham County Detention Center)
CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. - The grandmother of Quinton Simon, the 20-month-old boy whose remains were found in a Chatham County landfill, is now behind bars.
Billie Jo Betterton, who also goes by the last name Howell, was arrested and booked into the Chatham County Detention Center on a charge of contempt of court.
The charges don't appear to be related to the boy's death.
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Betterton reportedly had custody of Simon at the time of his disappearance.
Quinton Simon (Chatham County Police Department)
Simon was originally reported missing on the morning of Oct. 5 by his mother, 22-year-old Leilani Simon, who told a 911 dispatcher that she awoke to find her door open and believed someone had entered her home to take her son from his playpen.
After spending a month combing through 1.2 million pounds of trash, authorities found Quinton's remains. In late November, the FBI confirmed that the bones found were the little boy's.
"This is a heartbreaking development," Police Chief Jeff Hadley said at a press conference. "From the beginning, we were hopeful we would find him alive and unharmed. But evidence has always pointed to the mother and we believe his remains were found in the landfill."
Officers had previously arrested Leilani Simon on charges of malice murder, concealing the death of another person, false reporting and making false statements involving her son.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.