Leigh Ann Bauman realtor: Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri woman arrested conspiring to murder former mother in law after believing her ex husband was planning to fight for custody of their children.
A well-known Lake of the Ozarks real estate agent, model and self-described ‘cheer mom’ is alleged to have offered $1,500 for a hitman to kill her mother-in-law, prosecutors say.
Leigh Ann Bauman, 43, was arrested on Thursday, March 4, at 2:15 p.m. according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. She was charged with conspiracy to commit murder, 1st Degree, which would be a Class C Felony.
Bauman and her ex-husband divorced in 2018, and she believed he and his mother were going to take her to court to fight for custody of her children. The mother according to abc17news was also upset that the woman was purportedly straining Bauman’s relationship with one of her children.
Bauman was recorded discussing her plan as she tried to recruit people in St. Louis to carry out the hit and ‘make it look like an accident’, according the Camden County prosecutor’s office. The realtor is alleged to have offered to pay $1,500 for the ‘hit’.
She was given several chances to change her mind when asked by a witness-turned-informant if she wanted to go ahead but failed to do so, it is claimed.
Bauman initially approached the witness because she had gone to get her children but they refused to go with her, according to court documents seen by 13KRCG.
Afterwards, she allegedly sent her children a text telling them that their grandmother ‘would die’.
The children told their father about the text and he confronted Bauman, who replied that ‘she just meant [the grandmother] was old and was going to die’.
Bauman told the witness she would go to the bank on Wednesday but a day later she was arrested by troopers after the witness informed on her.
Glamorous social media
Court documents say she ‘gasped and blamed everything on the witness’, claiming they were a ‘hustler’ who was trying to get money from her abc17news reported.
At one point, troopers say, Bauman gave them her phone to look through but would not provide the PIN to access it. She called the Lake Ozark mayor during one interview and put the mayor on speakerphone, charging documents stated.
On her Facebook page, Bauman describes herself as a realtor, an artist, an entrepreneur, and a ‘cheer mom’ and frequently posts online about her ‘track record of success,’ along with ‘glamorous’ photos of herself.
Her LinkedIn account mentions an acting and modeling career, with appearances on Days of Our Lives and in Nike commercials.
Bauman remains at Camden County Jail. She was denied bond.
If convicted, Bauman could spend between 3–10 years in prison.
