aecifo

Husband of missing Texas woman asked partner to hide gun

Umito October 25, 2024

Another Texas man has been arrested in connection with the Suzanne Clark Simpson disappearance case, as new evidence suggests Simpson’s husband and business partner had nefarious motives.

Simpson, 51, has been missing from Olmos Park since October 7. The mother of four’s disappearance prompted the Texas Department of Public Safety to issue a CLEAR Alert — used for missing, kidnapped or abducted adults, or for adults believed to be in immediate danger.

Two days after Simpson was last seen, her husband allegedly sent a series of text messages to his business partner James Vallée Cotter, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by KENS5. Brad Simpson is now accused of asking his longtime associate to hide an AK-47.

Original story: Husband of missing Texas woman arrested, charged with domestic violence in ongoing search

‘I don’t have much time’: My husband asks his business partner to hide a gun

“If you’re in Bandera, can you take me home?” Brad allegedly texted Cotter on October 8, the day after he reported his wife missing. “I don’t have much time.”

“Sorry for the rush but you are all I have especially now…social media is destroying me,” Brad reportedly wrote in a follow-up message.

Cotter agreed to hide the gun in a wall of his San Antonio home, the affidavit said. Records show police searched the home Monday and an ATF K-9 team found the gun. A string was attached to the gun sight, presumably to allow for easy retrieval.

Evidence given to the inquest included video of the same gun in the Simpson home. When police searched the home on October 9, the gun was “missing from the same location it was observed in the video.”

Brad, who was arrested on October 9 for domestic violencefaced additional charges relating to prohibited weapons and tampering/fabrication of evidence. The first is a federal firearm charge for illegal possession of a short-barreled shotgun, documents show.

Cotter was also taken into custody Monday for allegedly hiding the weapon. He faces charges of tampering with evidence and not being honest with law enforcement.

Even with the current charges, law enforcement has not officially linked Brad to his wife’s disappearance. With $1 million in combined bonds for the new charges, he is now held on $3 million in bonds. His next court date is Nov. 13, records show.

Cotter’s bail was set at $500,000, with conditions of house arrest and surrender of his passport to police.

The search continues, the family becomes the “voice of the sister”

Local police were initially confident they would find more evidence at a Bexar County dump. However, four days of searching last week left them empty-handed. Attention returned to the wooded areas of Olmos Park this past weekend.

Suzanne’s sister spoke publicly for the first time.

“Suzanne was a beloved mother. She was an incredible person,” Teresa Clark said. “We want everyone to know that we are devastated by the loss of my sister. I am here to be my sister’s voice.”

At an Oct. 9 news conference, Olmos Park Police Chief Fidel Villegas said law enforcement and Suzanne’s loved ones were “very concerned.”

“Suzanne was known and is known as a very loving and reliable person, especially with her children and her work. She didn’t go to work and she didn’t contact her children so (it’s) very unusual,” he said. Villegas said.

Suzanne works as a real estate agent for Nix Real Estate Company in San Antonio. According to her biography, she is “very involved in (her) children’s school and sports activities.” At Wednesday’s press conference, friends continued to hope for a positive outcome.

Heather Affleck has known Suzanne for over 20 years.

“We just want people to continue to look for her and pray for her family and her children,” Affleck said.

Camille Mandigo said Suzanne was a “great friend” and a “wonderful mother” with no enemies.

“Everyone loves Suzanne. She’s the kindest, sweetest person,” Mandigo said. “I don’t think anyone could say anything bad about her.”

TIMELINE: Disappearance of Suzanne Clark Simpson

An arrest affidavit obtained by KSAT provides a vague timeline of events surrounding the disappearance of Suzanne Clark Simpson.

Sunday evening: Suzanne and her husband Brad, 53, attended a party at The Argyle in San Antonio’s Alamo Heights neighborhood. It was near their home in the 500 block of East Olmos Drive, near Shook Avenue. Suzanne wore a black dress.
Sunday, between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m.: A neighbor told investigators he heard screaming and saw Suzanne and Brad Simpson in a physical altercation. The neighbor said Brad appeared to grab Suzanne “and take control of her body” while he was “clearly trying to stop Ms Simpson from running away”. He last saw the couple walking west and went outside to see what was happening.
Shortly after: The neighbor reports hearing two or three screams, coming from a bushy area east of his home.
About an hour later: The neighbor saw Brad Simpson get into his black GMC pickup truck and leave the house.
About an hour or two later: Brad Simpson returned home.
Monday, 3 p.m.: Brad Simpson receives a call from their child’s school, telling him that the child has not been picked up. Brad told police that Suzanne usually picked the child up from school.
Tuesday afternoon: Law enforcement officials questioned staff at one of the children’s schools. The child told staff that his parents were “arguing” and that his father had hit his mother in the face and taken her phone. After the assault caused his mother to hit a wall, the child remembers seeing a bruise on his mother’s elbow.

Brad Simpson arrested and charged with domestic violence

After failing to appear for a follow-up interview with police, an arrest warrant was issued for Brad Simpson. According to the affidavit, he had gone to his ranch in Bandera County and “appeared to become separated from his family.” Olmos Park police report he was stopped on Interstate 10 East on a Kendall County border road early Wednesday morning.

Simpson was incarcerated in Kendall County Jail and charged with Assault Causing Bodily Injury – Domestic Violence and Unlawful Restraint. Bonds are set at $1 million for each charge, for a total of $2 million.

One of Simpson’s relatives was interviewed by Olmos Park Police Chief Fidel Villegas, who told the officer that Simpson “called him and apologized for all the trouble he had caused “.

— KENS5 contributed to this report.