LIBERTY, Mo. — A Liberty man says that he’s concerned for his daughter after his ex-wife apparently disappeared with the girl and another of her daughters following a weekend visitation earlier this month.
Maggie Deigh, 42, and daughters Bethany Bednar, 16, and Riley Reed, 4, haven’t been seen since the morning of Saturday, December 8th. Riley Reed’s father, Don Reed, says that his ex-wife was supposed to return his daughter from a weekend visitation on December 9th.
“My honest concern is that the children are in danger, both Bethany and Riley,” said Reed.
A Clay County court order shows Reed has primary custody, but he complains Liberty Police didn’t want to get involved at first – telling him they considered the disapperance a parental custody dispute and a civil matter.
“I’m very frustrated with police…..they told me all they could do was file an interference with custody form,” said Reed. He says that the very next day – Monday, December 10th – Liberty Police told him, “They don’t take interference with custody forms because the prosecutor has told them they don’t prosecute them.”
At that point Reed filed a missing person’s report but Liberty Police admit they didn’t upgrade the disappearance to a missing person’s case until Friday, December 14th, and Reed believes that’s only because, “my niece and a bunch of friends from Facebook literally deluged the mayor and the police station with phone calls.”
A Liberty Police spokesman told FOX 4 that investigators are actively searching for Maggie Deigh but says police have discretion about enforcing custody court orders and must believe the children are in imminent danger before they deciding if they will remove the girls from their mother’s care.
On Monday December 17th, Don Reed obtained a temporary restraining order against Deigh. His attorney believes that will force police to give his daughter back to him, if and when police find her. Deigh’s relatives tell investigators they don’t know where she is.
Reed went to Deigh’s workplace Monday night December 17th, only to discover she quit her job on December 7th.
Liberty Police have now put out an alert for Deigh’s car, a silver 2004 Chevorlet Impala with the Missouri Plate number JS1V6S.
FOX 4 also spoke with the father of 16-year-old Bethany Bednar. Dan Bednar says that he’s worried because his teenage daughter always answers her cell phone, and he hasn’t been able to reach her since early December.
