Man allegedly asked business partner to hide AK-47 amid search for his missing wife

SAN ANTONIO (TCN) -- A missing woman’s husband is facing new charges and his business associate has now been arrested amid the search for the wife, who has not been seen in more than two weeks.

According to Olmos Park Police Chief Fidel Villegas, on Sunday, Oct. 6, between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., Brad Simpson and his wife, Suzanne Simpson, reportedly got into an altercation at a club. Police did not learn about the fight until 24 hours later when Brad Simpson reported his wife missing. Olmos Park Police began investigating Suzanne Simpson’s disappearance and learned the couple’s disagreement at the club "could have gotten physical."

Villegas said Simpson was uncooperative with police, so he was arrested on charges of assault with bodily injury and unlawful restraint. He has since been additionally charged with tampering with evidence and possessing a prohibited weapon.

According to court records obtained by True Crime News, a neighbor allegedly witnessed the couple fighting on the night of Oct. 6. The neighbor reportedly said he noticed Brad Simpson "grabbing her upper torso area to gain control of her body."

Suzanne Simpson reportedly "was attempting to get away from Mr. Simpson’s grasp as he tried to pull her downward." The neighbor reportedly went outside to check on the situation, then heard screams. He reportedly went back to his home and saw Brad Simpson drive away and return about an hour or two later.

Suzanne Simpson’s phone last pinged to a parking lot on the morning of Oct. 7 and has not had any activity since.

The affidavit says Suzanne Simpson typically picked her kids up from school, but she never showed up on the afternoon of Oct. 7. Investigators learned Brad Simpson went to a ranch he owned in Bandera because he was "separating himself from his family."

Their youngest child, a 5-year-old girl, reportedly told her teacher that her parents had been "fighting" and "that her dad had hit her mom in the face and possibly pushed her into a wall." She said her mother had a bruise on her elbow and her dad took her mom’s phone away.

WOAI-TV reports Suzanne Simpson’s family members said the couple had gotten violent in the past. Officials have been searching for Suzanne Simpson since she was reported missing, but she has yet to be found.

KSAT-TV reports police started sifting through a landfill in Bexar County for her remains on Oct. 15 and it spanned the course of several days. Villegas said in a statement at the time, "We feel confident there is a good chance of recovering Suzanne at that location."

In a recent update, Texas Rangers arrested Brad Simpson’s friend and business partner James Vallee Cotter for tampering with evidence. According to KSAT, on Oct. 8, Brad Simpson reportedly texted Cotter and asked him to "haul a-- to meet me" at Cotter’s house, adding, "I don’t have much time."

In another text, Brad Simpson reportedly said, "OK, make sure to leave all that s--t in the pump house, especially that gun."

Another message read, "Sorry for the urgency but you’re all I got especially now...social media is destroying me."

Investigators learned Simpson allegedly asked Cotter to go to his home and get his rifle. Officials obtained a search warrant for Cotter’s home and discovered a fully automatic AK-47 hidden behind a wall. While searching Simpson’s house, they reportedly found a gun room with similar firearms.

Simpson’s total bond for his various charges is $3 million.

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