FREE ACCESS: Woman sought in kidnapping, ransom attempt of daughter

MALDEN — Authorities are searching for a non-custodial Butler County mother who is charged with kidnapping her daughter from a Malden home and holding the girl for ransom.

Stephanie Elaine Woodham, 31, and her boyfriend, Richard Simmers, 43, both of Fisk, were charged with the Class A felony of first-degree kidnapping earlier this week.

They are accused of kidnapping Woodham’s 12-year-old daughter on July 10 from the Benton Street home of the girl’s great-grandmother, who was her guardian. The girl reportedly was found later in the day with her mother and Simmers.

Woodham reportedly was not arrested at that time. Simmers was arrested at that time on unrelated charges and remains in the Wayne County Jail, awaiting extradition to Dunklin County.

A no-bond warrant is outstanding for Woodham’s arrest. She also is wanted on two Dunklin County failure to appear warrants for non-support.

“We haven’t tracked (Woodham) down yet,” said Malden Police Chief Jarrett Bullock. “We’ve reached out to different agencies.

“We don’t believe she is living in our area. Butler County was actively searching for her.”

Authorities learned Woodham’s daughter was missing at about 11:25 a.m. July 10 when they responded to a residence in the 1100 block of Benton Street.

Carolyn Martin, who Bullock indicated was the girl’s maternal great-grandmother, reported the girl was missing and that she believed she may have run away with Woodham and Simmers “because she had been making threats of running away to them because she did not like Martin’s rules,” Malden Sgt. Denise Summers wrote in her probable-cause affidavit.

Martin further reported she did not give her great-granddaughter permission to leave, Summers said.

At about 6:40 p.m., Summers said, the girl’s biological father, James Ross, contacted the police department and reported “he had been contacted several times through the day from Woodham on Facebook Messenger, starting at 9:30 (a.m.).

“Ross stated Woodham told him she picked up (their daughter) because (she) was fighting with Martin and (she) wanted to see him after she takes a nap.”

Summers said Ross further reported he received a message from Simmers saying, “‘Hey, bub, if she contacts you, can you not say anything?’

“A short time later a male subject called him ... he was having a hard time understanding the whole conversation, but the male subject said something about Carol several times.”

Summers said Ross reported he was waiting to hear back from Woodham when he saw on Facebook that his daughter was missing.

Just before 7 p.m., Summer said, a woman living in the 1200 block of Benton Street called the police department about footage on her camera of a young girl knocking on her door at about 4:15 a.m. that morning wanting to use a telephone to call her mother.

The description provided by the woman, Summers said, matched the missing girl.

Summers said at about 7:44 p.m. Martin received a text message advising “they had (the girl) ... and she was sick and wanted to speak with Martin and until $7,000 is received (the girl) will not be released.”

About 45 minutes later, Summers said, the Bernie Police officers found the girl was with Simmers and Woodham at a residence in Bernie housing.

“The Stoddard County Division of Child Services and juvenile authorities were contacted and (the girl) made the statement to them that Woodham picked her up, and they had been planning this for a while,” Summers said.

Anyone with information on Woodham’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Malden Police Department at 573-276-2211.