SAN ANTONIO — A close neighbor of Suzanne Simpson, the 51-year-old Olmos Park woman missing since Sunday night, told police he saw her "involved in a physical altercation" with her husband the night she disappeared. He also told authorities it appeared Brad Simpson was "clearly attempting to keep Ms. Simpson from running away."
Shortly after, that neighbor told police, he heard screams from the area of their home.
Brad Simpson, 53, was taken into custody early Wednesday morning and faces charges of domestic violence and unlawful restraint. But police haven't definitively connected him with his wife's disappearance, which he reported Monday, a full day after they attended a party at The Argyle event venue less than two miles from their home in the 500 block of East Olmos.
The details of Brad Simpson's arrest affidavit underscore the urgency with which law enforcement is looking for any sign of Suzanne. That effort has grown to involve Texas Rangers and the Texas Department of Public Safety, which continued scouring the wooded area near the couple's home on Wednesday.
According to the arrest affidavit completed by a Texas Rangers investigator, Brad Simpson had been "uncooperative" with the Olmos Park Police Department's investigation before his arrest, having skipped a scheduled interview and going to a family property in Bandera County. He was arrested in Kendall County.
The Simpsons' 5-year-old daughter also reportedly told staff at her school that her parents had been fighting, including that "her dad had hit her mom in the fact and possible pushed her into a wall."
The Texas Rangers' eventually interview the family's neighbor, whom investigators called "credible and reliable." His window faces the Simpsons' home, which is how he was able to notice "what appeared to be arguing between two people" sometime between 10 and 11 p.m. on Sunday.
That's the same time frame police say Suzanne Simpson was last seen.
The affidavit says the neighbor "explained that the arguing became louder and seemed closer to his window" before he saw the two tangling in an altercation. He also told police he noticed Brad Simpson grabbing his wife's upper torso "to gain control of her body."
That struggle lasted for about a minute. When the neighbor grabbed a flashlight and tried to look for them, he "heard two to three screams from a wooden/brushy area east of his residence." He later saw Brad's black truck leaving the home before telling police it returned one to two hours later.
As of Wednesday night, he remains jailed in Kendall County on bonds totaling $2 million.
Search expected to expand
On Wednesday evening, law enforcement wrapped up their search of the wooded area near the Simpson residence. They also looked at the interior of her home earlier in the day.
On Wednesday afternoon, Olmos police officials said they were hearing from neighbors about "tension" in the family home. Authorities also said they're seeking information about where Brad Simpson's truck may have been Sunday night or over the past several days.
Meanwhile, close friends told KENS 5 Suzanne is a kind neighbor and loved by many. One neighbor said she was praying for the family, saying "there's a big group that really cares about her."
Authorities said Simpson was wearing a long black dress with black shoes when she was last seen. Anyone with information about Simpson's whereabouts is urged to call police at one of three numbers:
- (210) 209-2701
- (210) 219-2702
- (210) 822-2000