'A money-making circus': Police slams 'YouTube protesters' gathered outside missing Quinton Simon's home
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA: The police have arrested YouTube protesters outside missing toddler Quinton Simmon's home in Buckhalter Road who made it "nearly impossible" for neighbors to live peacefully. Quinton's disappearance last month triggered one of the biggest investigations in the history of the Chatham County Police Department (CCPD).
The 20-month-old went missing from his Savannah home on October 5, with his mother Leilani Simon termed as a prime suspect in the case. The police have continued with their massive search to find Quinton's remains in the landfill for four weeks. His grandmother Billie Jo Howel had earlier claimed to reporters that cops found Simon's remains in the landfill, according to The Sun. However, this has since been proven to be untrue, and police maintain it might not be an easy task to retrieve the toddler's body. Meanwhile, Simon's grandfather, Henry Dale Moss Sr, died in a tragic hit-and-run on Wednesday, November 2.
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The police slammed the protesters for turning the tragic death into a "money-making circus" and went on to say that the protests had taken precious resources away from the demanding investigation. "Over the last three weeks, while Chatham County Police Department officers have been focused on finding Quinton Simon, a growing number of people calling themselves protestors have gathered outside of Quinton’s home on Buckhalter Road," Chatham County Police Department wrote on their Facebook page. "While the Chatham County Police Department supports everyone’s right to protest peacefully, we also support the rights of citizens to live in a peaceful environment. The people on Buckhalter Road calling themselves ‘protestors’ have made that nearly impossible," the post added.
The department said that they have responded to over 50 calls for service in the 500 block of Buckhalter Road since October 12, and "we have multiple arrests." They said, "This has taken precious resources away from our department at a time when we are focused on the most massive investigation in the history of CCPD..Many of the people claiming to want justice for Quinton have turned his tragic and heartbreaking case into a money-making circus."
In another post on Nov 2, they said, "The odds of recovering Quinton’s remains were low. Most landfill searches do not end in a recovery due to many factors including volume of trash to search and compression of the debris, however we stay focused." They added that they were determined to find the missing child. "The landfill search has been a task more grueling than anyone could imagine, and we would like to thank the dedicated Chatham County Police Department, FBI, GBI and Chatham County Sheriff’s Office personnel who have gone to that site day after day – determined to find Quinton and to find answers."
Earlier, on October 26, Chatham County Police Department had informed the public, "We are now three weeks into our search for Quinton Simon, and finding him remains the top priority for the Chatham County Police Department. We are committed to giving Quinton the professional, detailed, and thorough investigation that he deserves."