Missing 1-Year-Old Kahleb Collins Presumed Dead; Mother Facing Charges

FAYETTE, AL — A missing 1-year-old boy in Fayette County is believed to be dead and his mother is now facing charges as investigators work to locate the remains of the child.

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The 24th District Attorney's Office, along with the Fayette County Sheriff's Office and Alabama Bureau of Investigation have been handling the case of Kahleb Collins, who is now believed to have been dead for several months.

District Attorney Andy Hamlin said Monday that Kahleb's body has not been recovered but said law enforcement teams are still actively gathering information and searching for his remains.

As Patch previously reported, authorities learned of Kahleb's disappearance after a Dec. 8 single-vehicle crash that claimed the lives of his father, Steven Bradley Collins, and two-year-old sister, Ryleigh Collins.

Investigators with the Fayette County Sherriff's Office and the Alabama State Bureau of Investigations executed warrants on Monday charging Kahleb's mother, 22-year-old Wendy Pamela Bailey.

Bailey is charged with the following offenses:

• Aggravated child abuse - Class A felony
• First-degree domestic violence - Class A felony
• Abuse of a corpse - Class C felony
• Criminally negligent homicide – Class A misdemeanor

Hamlin said the criminally negligent homicide charge is related to the death of Ryleigh, who was unrestrained in the pickup truck Steven Collins was driving in the fatal crash, which occurred on Fayette County Road 73 near the Glen Allan community.

The day following the crash, law enforcement was also notified that the couple involved had another child who was unaccounted for.

Bailey has been booked into the Fayette County Jail and is awaiting a bond hearing.

She is also the second person charged in the case. As Patch previously reported, Bailey's father, 55-year-old John Elton Bailey, was charged earlier this month with failure to report a missing child.

Hamlin said the state intends to request that bond in Pamela Bailey's case be denied, pursuant to Anaih's Law.

"This investigation has been particularly challenging as it involved the tragic deaths of two young children," Hamlin said. "I want to commend the efforts and cooperation shown by every agency involved: the Fayette County Sheriff's Office, Alabama Bureau of Investigation and the Alabama State Troopers.”

Hamlin went on to say the case remains under investigation, with Bailey possibly facing additional charges.

"Now that the charges have been brought, I look forward to getting the case to court to seek justice for these two innocent children," Hamlin said.

Those with information that could assist in the investigation are asked to contact the Fayette County Sheriff's Office at (205) 932-3205, the Alabama Bureau of Investigation at (334) 676-7894 or the District Attorney's Office at (205) 367-9915.

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