An arrest has been made in the disappearance of Colorado missing boy Gannon Stauch.
(Letecia Stauch was arrested March 2, 2020, on first degree murder in the disappearance of her stepson Gannon Stauch.)
Letecia “Tecia” Stauch has been arrested on first-degree murder charges in the disappearance of her stepson Gannon Stauch. It has been nearly five weeks since Gannon was reported missing.
(El Paso County, Colorado, Sheriff Bill Elder with the family of Gannon Stauch at press conference announcing the arrest of Gannon’s stepmother, Letecia Stauch.)
According to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office at a press conference, the arrest occurred on the morning of March 2, 2020, in Horry County, South Carolina. El Paso County Sheriff’s Office detectives, FBI agents, and members of the El Paso County 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office made the arrest of Letecia Stauch without incident.
Letecia will be held without bail in the Horry County Jail on the charges of Murder in the First Degree of a Child Under Twelve, Child Abuse Resulting in Death, a charge of Tampering with a Deceased Body, and Tampering with Physical Evidence. She is currently awaiting extradition back to El Paso County, Colorado.
(Gannon Stauch was reported missing by his stepmother Letecia Stauch on January 27, 2020 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.)
Gannon, 11, was reported missing by Letecia Stauch on January 27, 2020, claiming Gannon had gone to a friend’s home in the Lorson Ranch neighborhood and failed to come home.
Initially, authorities called Gannon a runaway when they first asked the public to help find the little boy. But the sheriff’s office announced January 30 that Gannon was considered a missing endangered child because of his age, the time he had been gone, and his reliance on medication.
The search that was supposed to take place last Friday in the area of Highway 105 and Highway 83 was postponed and authorities announced a major development in the investigation that would be released during the press conference held at noon.
During the press conference, investigators said they believe Gannon is no longer alive and they have yet to locate him. They reiterated search efforts to locate Gannon’s remains would continue.
(Landen Hiott made an emotional statement after being told her son was likely deceased and stepmom Letecia Stauch was arrested for his murder.)
“Today I got the worst news and the best news,” said Gannon’s biological mother Landen Hiott had been holding out hope her son was still alive. “Obviously we know what the worst news is. The best news is that justice will be served. And I’ll make sure that justice is served because my boy did not deserve any of this that happened.”
Authorities said the affidavit has been sealed and remains tight-lipped on the evidence that led them to arrest Letecia.
“Just hold on to questions until we know that this person, this stepmom that I even trusted, that she will pay 100 percent for this heinous thing she done,” said Landen. “And I know that’s what will be done.”
Al Stauch, Gannon’s father did not speak at the press conference, but a sheriff’s department spokesperson held back tears as her voice cracked while reading Al’s statement.
“The person who committed this heinous horrible crime is the one that I gave more to than anyone else on this planet and that is a burden that I will carry with me for a very long time,” Al said.
(Al Stauch breaks down during press conference announcing the arrest of his wife Letecia Stauch for the murder of his son Gannon.)
He writes that his heart stopped on the day that Gannon was born on September 29, 2008, coming way too early and weighing only one pound six ounces–and again on March 2, 2020, when he learned his little boy would never be coming home.
“I’d been looking forward to his teenage years, and the fun we had ahead of us as he became a young man,” Al said. “My little boy is not coming home. We will never play Nintendo again. No more Taco Tuesdays. No more smooth looking haircuts. No more “Big Bubba” for my Lana. And no more G Man for the world.”
(Searchers from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office search for Gannon Stauch’s body with probes and shovels.)
“While we have not yet found Gannon, information has been developed that is helping us narrow our search, said Lieutenant Mitch Mihalko of the sheriff’s office.
Since Gannon vanished, crews have been scouring dozens of acres of southern Douglas County, in search of the missing boy’s body.
“As you can see from the arrest sadly, we do not believe Gannon is alive. Our work is just beginning, and you will continue to see many law enforcement officials in El Paso County over the coming weeks and possibly months as we continue our relentless pursuit of justice for Gannon and his family.”
(Letecia Stauch arrested for her stepson’s murder on March 2, 2020.)
Prior to the arrest, Letecia had been obsessively posting on various social media sites, professing her innocence and offering explanations as to what happened to Gannon, even developing a timeline she posted on Facebook.
Letecia claimed she was harassed online and should be offered an apology from everyone who suspected she could have ever hurt her stepson.
However, Gannon’s family has continuously urged the public to call in with any information to contact law enforcement so that they may be able to give Gannon a proper burial.
“I know where my son’s at without a shadow of a doubt, said Landen. “I want to leave this earth knowing justice was served for my boy.”
Prosecutors and the sheriff’s office are still asking for information from the public to help bring their promise for justice to fruition.
“One, we still want to bring Gannon home so that he can have a proper burial and his family can get the closure they need,” said Deputy District Attorney Michael Allen. “But we also want to hold the person we are charging, Letecia Stauch accountable for what she did.”
Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Gannon Stauch, please call the El Paso County Sheriff at 719-520-6666 or email tips@elpaso.com
(Gannon Stauch vanished from his home on January 27, 2020 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.)
Gannon Stauch, 11, went missing from his home in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Janury 27, 2020. More than two weeks after his disappearance the search has expanded to northern El Paso County and neighboring southern part of Douglas County.
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office did not provide an explantion for the expanding the search so far north, which was originally focused over an hour away around the young boy’s neighborhood on the southeastern edge of Colorado Springs.
(The search for Gannon Stauch originally centered around his neighborhood in Colorado Springs but has expanded to the northern part of El Paso County and southernmost Douglas County. Photo of El Paso County line.)
“We are running this investigation, the search piece of the investigation, and the investigative piece are running parallel with each other” said El Paso County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Jackie Kirby. “So, as we get tips and leads and information through our investigation that determines our search areas.”
Over 130 people including members of search and rescue teams and canines searched for Gannon on Wednesday, February 12. The search Thursday also included dogs and more than 80 people.
(Mounted patrol and 80 other members of the El Paso and Douglas County sheriff’s offices search for Gannon Stauch in southern Douglas county in Colorado.)
“It’s 35 acres, very different terrain. There are some treed areas, there’s very rough terrain. There’s terrain that goes down into deep ravines that would have to be gotten down to by rope,” said Kirby. “So again, very various terrain that they’re navigating here yesterday, today and we’ll see how long into the weekend this search out here will go.”
The sheriff’s office has received over 500 leads in the case.
The Disappearance
Gannon was reported missing January 27, by his stepmother, Letecia “Tecia” Stauch, who said Gannon left to go to a friend’s house in the afternoon. Gannon had stayed home from Grand Mountain School that day. When he didn’t come home, Tecia said she called the sheriff and reported him as a runaway. In fact, when authorities first requested the public’s help to find him, they referred to him as a runaway instead of an endangered missing child.
Gannon’s father Albert Stauch is an active-duty Army National Guardsman and had been in training. He flew home from Oklahoma the same day.
Gannon’s biological mother Linden Hiott lives in South Carolina and also arrived in Colorado Springs to help search for her son.
(Letecia Stauch, stepmother of Gannon Stauch, has conducts interview but doesn’t want her face shown publicly.)
Stepmother’s Statement to Media
On February 11, 2020, Gannon’s stepmother put out a public statement implying the boy had been abducted. In the statement she also reaffirmed that she last saw Gannon between 3:15 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. on January 27, heading to a friend’s home in their neighborhood.
“I encourage you to think of any suspicious cars that may have been in the area watching a few days prior and keep praying for G,” Letecia said in the statement.
Letecia also included a plea to Gannon to return home.
“To Gannon, please come home soon because your daddy is waiting to watch the new Sonic movie that comes out this week and the cool shirt I got you to wear to the theatre is in your closet, Letecia’s statement said.
Letecia also addressed the blast of social media the case has received. “Social Media has been devastating from the harsh comments, speculations, threats, cyberbullying, etc. It has been a challenge when people are trying to run you off the road, waiting outside your hotel, threatening to kill you, etc.,” the statement said.
Letecia also offered a timeline of activities she did with Gannon, beginning January 25, and went on to say she has shared the timeline and cell phone photographs with police as well.
“Saturday night, G was helping me unload in the garage and cut his foot because there are a lot of tools because Albert does woodworking,” the statement said. “He sat on the edge of the car and we bandaged it up. He was good to go.”
Letecia went on to say that afterwards she noticed Gannon kept going to the side of the house to see if the gate was locked as he had the only key.
Letecia claims she and Gannon hiked on January 26, and shopped together on January 27, the day he vanished.
With mounting pressure from media and police, Letecia claims she hired an attorney because the questions detectives were asking her were making her feel uncomfortable and she felt her constitutional rights were being violated.
“I took care of Gannon for the last two years, in our home, because his mother didn’t want to do it, and I would never, never, ever hurt this child,” Letecia told CBS 11.
(Surveillance video of the red truck Letecia Stauch was driving the day Gannon Stauch disappeared.)
Neighbor’s Statement
Roderrick Drayton, a neighbor of the stepmom, said his surveillance video showed a female relative and Gannon get into a truck that Monday morning. When the woman returned about four hours later, only she got out of the truck and went inside, Drayton told the Denver Post.
Letecia has contested Grayton’s statements, claiming Gannon did come home with her that day and states she has proof.
“Please don’t think for a minute that there isn’t enough technology to determine shadows and movement around the truck. There was also proof from my phone that we had taken a selfie in the truck in our driveway that was time-stamped.,” Letecia wrote.
Police have asked Letecia to keep quiet about other details of the case.
No Abduction
In response to Letecia’s recent statement, Colorado police say they currently have no reason to believe the boy was abducted.
“Right now, there is no threat to the community as far as this case goes,” El Paso County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Deborah Mynatt told People Magazine. “We don’t have those specifics to put out there [yet], and we haven’t done so. There’s reasons for that and we just can’t go into those details.”
In response to concerns from the public, police have been very closed mouthed about the case.
“We really want to stay on track and stay focused,” Sgt. Deborah Mynatt went on to say. “And I can understand the community’s concern with the lack of information being provided, but we hope that the community can trust that we’re doing that because we’re trying to ensure there’s no … potential of it being jeopardized.”
(Albert Stauch and ex-wife Linden Hiott making one of several public pleas for the safe return of their missing son Gannon Stauch.)
A Mother’s Plea
Linden Hiott, who has been staying at the home of Albert Stauch has made several public pleas for her son’s safe return and remains active in the public eye. Linden, Albert and Gannon’s little sister made a heartbreaking plea that was posted on the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office YouTube page.
“How would I describe my Gannon, my “G Man,” my hero. I love him so much,” Linden said in the video. “He’s full of life, he’s happy, he’s energetic, he loves sports, he loves Sonic, he loves going outside and playing with his friends, his sister, his neighbor, especially Braydon.”
Linden and Albert have been working cooperatively with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office and says she is moved by the support she has received from the community.
(Linden Hiott, Albert Stauch and Laina Stauch make emotional plea for Gannon’s safe return posted on the sheriff’s YouTube page.)
“I don’t have answers for my feelings, other than I’m afraid,” Linden said. “I’m afraid that I’ll never hear his voice, that I’ll never hear him run and say, Mommy!”
At the end of the emotional four-minute video, Gannon’s little sister Laina said, “I love you brother.”
Anyone with information about the disappearance of Gannon Stauch, please call the El Paso Sheriff’s Office at 719-520-6666 or 719-390-5555.
