By Associated Press
Alton, IL – Three people in southwestern Illinois are accused of helping in the voluntary disappearance of a teenager whose stepmother is still missing under what investigators consider suspicious circumstances.
Authorities believe there's no known link between the cases of 18-year-old Heather Woodward and 48-year-old Bonnie Woodward.
The teenager resurfaced on her 18th birthday on July 3, eight days after her stepmom went missing after last being seen talking to a man outside the nursing home where she worked.
Madison County prosecutors have charged one suspect with felony obstruction of justice for allegedly lying to police about the teen's whereabouts. A Jersey County couple is accused of a misdemeanor for harboring the teenager as a runaway.