With a trail of suspicious deaths, Monster Mom has failed to show up in an Idaho court to prove her missing children are alive. 

Police say the mother of two missing kids, who was found vacationing in Hawaii earlier in the week, failed to show up to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (DHW), as directed by the court.

On January 25, 2019, Kauai police pulled over Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell near a beach resort in Princeville, Hawaii, searching them and their car for any evidence of Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7, and his sister Tylee Ryan, 17, who have been missing since September. 

Though Daybell and Vallow were not arrested, police served a court order from Idaho, directing her to bring the children to the DHW by January 30, or face legal action. 

Joshua’s grandparents, who have been waiting for the children’s safe return have been trying to hold on to hope, but now that hope is dwindling.

A Bizarre Twist

The bizarre case began last July, after Vallow’s fourth husband, Charles Vallow was shot and killed by her brother, Alex Cox, during an argument at their home in Arizona. At the time, Cox said the shooting was in self-defense, but the case remains under investigation. In December, Cox also died, but the cause of death is unknown at this time. Police in Gilbert, Arizona, continue to investigate his death and waiting for toxicology results. 

Vallow moved to eastern Idaho with the children a month after her husband’s death and married Daybell. Only weeks earlier, his wife Tammy, died of what authorities initially listed as natural causes. 

The Children’s Disappearance

The extended family grew concerned because they had not had contact with Tylee and Joshua who has special needs. Rexburg Police Department in Idaho says the children have not been seen since September, but Vallow never reported them missing.

Vallow and Daybell skipped town but left the children’s belongings at their home, causing significant concern of whether the children are still alive. 

Responding to the family’s fears, police went to Vallow’s home to ask about the children. Vallow told authorities that the kids were staying with relatives in Arizona – a claim that authorities quickly found out was not true. Police returned to Vallow’s home the next day and found they had skipped town.

Body Exhumed

Meanwhile, authorities were beginning to question Tammy Daybell’s death. In December, Fremont County Sheriff worked with Utah authorities, where Tammy Daybell’s body was buried, to exhume her body for an autopsy and toxicology tests.

Fremont County Sheriff Len Humphries told reporters that investigators searched Chad Daybell’s residence early in January, and removed 43 items to include phones, computers, medications, and journals. Humphries said, at this time, Chad Daybell remains a person of interest in Tammy’s death and the disappearance of Vallow’s children. 

Ten days before Tammy’s death, a masked man approached her in her driveway and shot at her several times with a paintball gun. She filed a report with the Fremont County Sheriff who investigated the claim. 

Daybell passed away on October 19, 2019. On October 9, she went on a neighborhood Facebook group and described what happened.

“Something really weird just happened, and I want you to know so you can watch out,” Daybell wrote. “I had gotten home and parked in our front driveway. As I was getting stuff out of the back seat, a guy wearing a ski mask was suddenly standing by the back of my car with a paintball gun. He shot at me several times, although I don’t think it was loaded. I yelled for Chad and he ran off around the back of my house.”

“Our deputy went out there and investigated the report, but he was unable to find anything,” Sheriff Humphries said.

Reward Offered

Joshua Vallow’s grandparents, Larry and Kay Woodcock, announced they were offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to the whereabouts of the children earlier this month. The Woodcock’s say they believe Charles Vallow was murdered. They also told reporters her ex-husband was so worried that she would kill him that he obtained an Order of Protection. 

“We strongly believe that Joshua and Tylee’s lives are in danger,” said Rexburg police in a statement earlier this month.

Kay Woodcock said she last spoke to her grandson on August 10, and that the conversation only lasted 36 seconds. She said it seemed like he was looking at someone off-camera who directing him. 

“J.J. is my heart,” Larry said. “I’m hoping this will allow one person to simply say ‘I saw (him). I know where he’s at.’ And give us that information so we can bring J.J. and Tylee back.” 

Heartbroken, Larry Woodcock and his wife have also set up a website called FindJJandTylee.com. 

During a press conference, the Woodcocks were asked if they believed their grandchildren were dead. 

“We want to believe that they are alive, and that’s the reason for the reward,” Larry replied. “It’s the reason, we don’t say, the ‘D’ word. We’re not going to because we hope and pray these kids are alive.”

Witnesses reported to police that Lori told others that Tylee died in 2017, and Chad told others that Lori had no minor children. Both statements very far from the truth. 

“It sends chills up our spines, Kay Woodcock said.” That’s just what brought it home for us. ‘Oh, my God, this is something really bad.’”

Child Protection Order 

Idaho authorities initiated a child-protection action on behalf of the missing children and obtained a court order to force Vallow to present the children to authorities within 5 days. 

“We can confirm that Lori Vallow was served with that order in the city of Princeville on the island of Kauai, Hawaii, on Saturday, January 25^th, by the Kauai Police Department and that Chad Daybell was with her,” Rexburg police said in a statement. 

“We can further confirm that Tylee and J.J. were not with Lori and Chad and there is no evidence that Tylee and J.J. were ever in Hawaii.”

When Vallow and Daybell were pulled over and their car seized, an East Idaho News reporter was on the scene. He asked Vallow where her children are and she responded, “No comment.” When he told her that people across the country are praying for her children, she responded, “That’s great,” and refused additional questions. 

A Son’s Plea

On January 5, 2020, Lori Vallow’s older son made an emotional plea in a video he posted to his YouTube channel telling her to reveal information about where his missing sister Tylee, and little brother Joshua are.  

“I can’t tell you how hurt and frustrated and confused I am about what’s going on,” Vallow’s oldest son, Colby Ryan said. “Even if you just show them on Facetime. Just show them on Facetime to the police it would be a lot better.” 

He went on to say, “I don’t know what else I can tell you to do than to know that this is just the right thing to do.” 

Relatives of Vallow all say she began to change when she joined a religious group believed to be extreme. Her son no longer recognizes his mother. “We had a life and it seems like that life never existed at this point Ryan said. 

Ryan and Tylee’s father, Joseph Ryan, passed away from a heart attack during 2018. 

Doomsday Cult

Daybell has authored several books on near-death experiences and doomsday scenarios that have been promoted to Mormon audiences.

Lori and Charles Vallow had lived in Kauai for several years before moving to Arizona. She became obsessed with Daybell’s books and connected with the author. 

In divorce documents filed by Charles Vallow last February claimed that Lori believed she was a “translated being” and “a god assigned her to carry out the work of the 144,000 at Christ’s second coming in July 2020.” 

Daybell has similar beliefs and a member of a fringe “doomsday cult” claiming in podcasts and blog posts that he has had near-death experiences that allowed him to have visions of the future. He wrote about the apocalypse in one of his books based on the Church for Latter-day Saints theology. 

Other books talk about shocking pandemics, hurricanes, civil unrest, and even a Chinese bioterrorism attack. 

Vallow and Daybell did “Preparing A People” podcasts made by Color My Media, a small multi-media company who wrote in a December 26, 2019, statement: 

*Chad Daybell was an author and began publishing books over 20 years ago under the name of “Spring Creek Book Company.” He spoke at some of the “Preparing A People” events, but had no ownership in it, nor was he a founder. Mr. Daybell was simply one of many speakers at the events. His last speaking engagement was back in February of 2019, in Boise, Idaho. Like all of our speakers, we helped promote the events by interviewing and podcasting interviews with our speakers, including, but in no way exclusively to, Mr. Daybell.

Local, state and federal authorities are still searching for the Vallow children. 

Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Joshua Vallow and Tylee Ryan, please call the Rexburg Police Department at 208-359-3000 or 1-800-843-5678.