Former Crawford County official accused of conspiracy to kidnap her daughter

The warrant said Hamby allegedly came up with the idea to have her daughter "kidnapped" as a scare tactic due to her talking to strangers online.

Author: Spencer Bailey 

CRAWFORD COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — Four people, including a former Crawford County official, have been arrested in an alleged kidnapping plot.

Tamara "Tammi" Hamby, who once served on the Crawford County Library Board, turned herself in on Dec. 3 after allegedly enlisting three other people to kidnap her disabled daughter in what she said was an effort to teach her a lesson.

David Qbao, Nico Austria, and Shannon Yazmin Yvonne Childers have all been arrested in connection to the allegations.

An arrest warrant for Hamby said that on Nov. 17, a deputy with the Crawford County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) responded to a possible kidnapping involving Hamby's 22-year-old daughter, who according to guardianship court records has physical and intellectual disabilities.

The warrant said Hamby allegedly came up with the idea to have her daughter "kidnapped" as a scare tactic due to her talking to strangers online, including someone reportedly claiming to be country singer Luke Bryan.

Childers, the in-home nursing assistant that helps care for Hamby's daughter, was contacted by Hamby about the plan for a staged kidnapping, the warrant said.

Arrest documents said the plan was to have someone pretend to be associated with Luke Bryan and communicate with Hamby's daughter to coordinate a meet up.

The plan was then to have the person pick Hamby's daughter up, take her to a field up the road, and demand money before tying her to a tree. The warrant says then, Hamby was set to show up and "rescue her."

According to the warrant, Childers then recruited Quach and Austria to assist, and they showed up to the Hamby residence wearing ski masks and took Hamby's daughter.

Austria reportedly took a wrong turn and ended up in the wrong field, the warrant said. Hamby's daughter was zip tied and tied to a tree.

Hamby's daughter eventually broke free and attempted to run away but was tackled by Austria and Quach, who threatened to hurt her and retied her to the tree, the warrant said. Hamby was reportedly watching the entire time.

The warrant claimed Hamby's daughter escaped on her own and was able to contact 911.

"[Hamby's daughter] was in fear for her life and clung tightly to a teddy bear the entirety of me speaking with her during her interview," the CCSO deputy said in a narrative.

Guardianship court records filed in the past week, which are no longer publicly available, showed the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) had filed an emergency petition for custody of Hamby's daughter.

The Crawford County Circuit Clerk's office confirmed to 5NEWS that the case was sealed by a court order.

Before they were sealed, 5NEWS obtained documents where Gentry Wahlmeier, an attorney running for Crawford County prosecutor, filed a motion to intervene on the Hambys' behalf.

Current county prosecutor Kevin Holmes spoke to 5NEWS about the allegations on the day of Hamby's arrest, explaining that the decisions the four suspects made were "horrible." 

“Listen, these aren't hardened criminals. These aren't people that have a have any criminal record whatsoever. But I mean, they made horrible decisions, and those decisions have consequences," Holmes said.

Hamby submitted her resignation as a library board member on Nov. 24, effective immediately. Her reasoning for her resignation was that she was moving out of the Van Buren district. 

Hamby is expected in court on Dec. 10. The family has a hearing in their DHS guardianship case on Dec. 16.

Full Article & Source:
Former Crawford County official accused of conspiracy to kidnap her daughter