48 Hours - The Missing Children of Lori Vallow Daybell

Episode Date: May 17, 2020

Two children vanish and an Idaho mother won’t say where they are. In their first network TV interview, her mother and sister say she’d never harm her children. So where are the kids? CBS News correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti reports.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to this podcast ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app today. Even if you love the thrill of true crime stories as much as I do, there are times when you want to mix it up. And that's where Audible comes in, with all the genres you love and new ones to discover. Explore thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. Listening to Audible can lead to positive change in your mood, your habits,

and even your overall well-being. And you can enjoy Audible anytime, while doing household chores, exercising, commuting, you name it. There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free 30-day Audible trial and your first audiobook is free. Visit audible.ca. In 2014, Laura Heavlin was in her home in Tennessee when she received a call from California. Her daughter, Erin Corwin, was missing. The young wife of a Marine had moved to the California desert

to a remote base near Joshua Tree National Park. They have to alert the military. And when they do, the NCIS gets involved. From CBS Studios and CBS News, this is 48 Hours NCIS. Listen to 48 Hours NCIS ad-free starting October 29th on Amazon Music. Contestant number 13. Lori Vallow Daybell is a former beauty contestant.

Former Mother of the Year. But I say former because now Lori Daybell appears to be somebody else. Lori Daybell has two missing children. J.J. Vallow, Tylee Ryan, disappear in September. Months later, there's no sign of life. There's no sign of death. There are just questions.

Frustrating questions. Ooh, look at how handsome. We just want to help the family find these kids. My name is Deanne Carter. I'm a member of the Facebook group Christmas Misery, and it's dedicated to real facts of trying to locate these kids. When I think about their mother, Lori Vallow, I'm furious. Police say Lori Vallow lied to them about the children's whereabouts and then disappeared a day later.

She's off in Hawaii, getting married, having fun, when the whole United States is trying to find these kids. But she will not say anything about her children. Where are your kids? They're coming. Why don't you just give us a comment? Just tell us where they are. The hardest part is learning more facts that come to light and the possibility that the children are no longer alive.

The last place Tylee Ryan was seen was Yellowstone National Park. There is no evidence of Tylee Ryan leaving this park. Anything could have happened. The FBI is now calling on everyone. The FBI is now calling on everyone. Yellowstone is wild, and it's vast, and it's teeming with peril. You have wild carnivores. You have deep, remote forests.

You have raging whitewater rivers. There are many places to hide a body in Yellowstone Park. People online are speculating that there's a possibility that Tylee could have been pushed into one of the hot pots. These pools are not only boiling, but have the acidity of battery acid. Investigators try to figure out what happened to her children. I have to see my family slaughtered on the news every day. You have nothing to say? I've heard things said about Lori that none of them are true. Lori would never harm her children, ever. She would never harm her children, ever.

She would never harm her children, and I know her. JJ, say hi. She's not a monster. She's not a heartless, cold-calculated, murderous type of person. Lori? Then why won't she just come out and say where the kids are. Did you do something to your children? Where are your children?

Are your children still alive? Welcome back, children? Where are your children? Are your children still alive? Welcome back, Lori. Where are your kids? Anything you want to say, Lori? Lori? She's become a national obsession. Lori Vallow hasn't said a word about where her children are. Lori Vallow Daybell, the Idaho mother who never reported her 7-year-old son, JJ,

and 17-year-old daughter, Tylee, missing. No one has seen the children in months. And there has been no clear sign of life or death. And despite her arrest on child abandonment charges, she's still not talking. But according to her family, there is a reason for that. Tonight, Lori's mother and sister speak out in their first network interview. You'll get a whole new perspective on Lori and why she's staying silent. Lori, where are your kids? But first, back to the Lori Vallow Daybell the rest of the world knows.

A woman who has a lot of explaining to do, says investigative reporter and 48 Hours consultant Morgan Lowe. Lori Daybell has two missing children. Lori Daybell is connected to suspicious deaths. Lori Daybell appears to be somebody that has a black cloud over her. Unless she's the one that is causing these bad things to happen. unless she's the one that is causing these bad things to happen. That's what the FBI and authorities in at least three states are trying to figure out as they sort through a convoluted tale that many believe will lead to murder charges. Allegations that still shock friends who knew Lori

before she became one of the most vilified women in America. Lori before she became one of the most vilified women in America. You never want to believe that somebody you cared about or looked up to is capable of something heinous, but unfortunately that might not be the reality here. This Lori is nothing like the friend she used to know, says April Raymond, whom we spoke to on Skype. They met in 2015 at the local Mormon church when Lori and her husband, Charles Vallow, moved to Kauai from Arizona. Everyone fell in love with her right away. She really did bring a lot of joy to the people that she surrounded herself with. Everything about Lori seemed to sparkle, says April,

including her marriage to Charles, a successful investment advisor. I had never seen two people married that were what I perceived as genuinely happy with one another. And I thought that those two were. Charles was Lori's fourth husband. He'd been married before, too, and both had grown children. But together, they were raising a new family. Tylee Ryan, Lori's daughter from a former marriage, and the recently adopted JJ, Charles' sister's grandson.

Lori was an exceptional mother. She was the mother that everyone wanted to be. My daughter loved Lori just as much as she loved Tylee. Name 10 things you like about me right now. Echo Ita-Aiho's daughter, Vicia, was best friends with Tylee and a constant visitor at the Vallow home in both Arizona and Hawaii. I don't like this filter. When the girls would go to the mall or to the movies or to the lake in Hawaii, they would go paddle boarding, go to the beach, ziplining, all those adventures. Lori was always there and always a part of it.

JJ, say hi. And so was Lori's son, JJ, who has autism and special needs. I really admired how patient she was with him and how much care she took of him. That included a service dog named Bailey. Neil Mestis was Bailey's trainer. The dog helped settle him down, keep him calm. JJ had a worrisome habit of wandering in the middle of the night, often outside the house. Bailey helped change that. One of the first nights that J.J. slept through the night was the first night that Bailey slept in his bed with him. So it was pretty awesome. But even Bailey could not take the place of his big sister.

Tylee and J.J. have an incredible bond and just a beautiful relationship. And she took care of him and takes care of him as a second mom would. Are you taking a video of my child? Your child? My child. And she's super sweet. She can be sassy. She's just a wonderful, awesome girl. But in 2017, the family dynamic began to shift. Tylee was missing her friends on the mainland, so they moved back to Arizona. Then something in Lori began to change. From what we have heard, she started to pay a little less attention to the kids,

and that's when the rift in the marriage started happening. April says Lori had begun reading the books of Chad Daybell. I've recently released my autobiography. A novelist and podcaster from Rexburg, Idaho, who told stories about doomsday and people preparing for the end of the world. Over time, some say Laurie became more and more obsessed with these extreme religious beliefs, venturing way beyond traditional Mormon doctrine. In the beginning of 2019, Lori disappeared and left Charles with the two kids. And this was for about like two months.

We think that she met up with Chad Daybell at that point. And she starts communicating with Charles in some really strange language. She was saying that she believes that she's the chosen one and that she can speak to dead people. She also spoke to April about it. She felt like she had existed on Earth several times. She felt like she had supernatural powers. The friend you knew before was basically the world's perfect soccer mom. And now she's saying she is essentially a reincarnated God. That's correct. Then April says Lori said something that would take on an even more sinister cast in the months ahead.

She told me that Charles was already dead and that there was a demon living inside of him. According to Charles, she even said, if you get in my way, I will murder you. I will murder you. And at that point, Charles Vallow decided he is going to file for divorce. Charles was so spooked by his wife of almost 13 years, he put his fears in writing. It's right there in the divorce paperwork. Charles was worried about his life, and he was also worried about the lives of JJ and Tylee. He knew that bad things were on the horizon. Sadly, Charles Vallow could not have been more right.

Around 7.40 a.m. on the morning of July 11, 2019, Charles went to Lori's rental home in Chandler, Arizona to take JJ to school. Less than an hour later, Charles was dead. Lori's brother, Alex Cox, had shot him. At 8.36 a.m., Alex Cox placed this 911 call. Is he breathing? I can't tell. He said, I need to report a shooting.

I shot my brother-in-law in self-defense. Is he hurt or is he alive? Yeah, there's blood. He's not moving. The police arrived and shot this body cam video of Alex Cox on the curb outside the home. He tells them that Charles and Lori got into a fight. So you get in an argument. What is it over? Well, it was over my sister. He was getting physical with her. Then he says Tylee came out of her room with a bat. She came out to defend my sister with her bat. Alex says Charles then grabbed the bat from Tylee and came at him, hitting him in the back of the head.

So I went to my room and got my gun. Alex then tells the officer he came back and shot Charles twice in the chest. Both Tylee, who had run outside, and Lori say they heard the shooting but didn't see it. Lori says she then walked past Charles's body and left the house to get JJ, who'd been waiting in the car. She and Tylee then drove him to school. And at some point a little later that morning, Lori and Tylee come walking up to the house. Hi, who are you? Okay, just stand over there for just a second, guys. The police blurred Tylee's face because she was a minor.

Does your husband live here? No. What was striking about the footage was that... Hello, young lady. They were very nonchalant. How long have you lived here? Like three weeks. Oh, geez.

Yeah, okay. That's why the neighbors don't know us. Gotcha. Like, hi, neighbor, sorry. Are you working at all? All three were questioned at the police headquarters and released. April learned of Charles' death on Google. April learned of Charles' death on Google. It all started to make a lot more sense. Suddenly, April remembered that strange thing Lori said in the months before the shooting, that Charles was already dead and had a demon living inside of him.

What went on in your mind? I felt really sick, and I just knew something was very, very wrong. In the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Peru and New Zealand, lies a tiny volcanic island. It's a little-known British territory called Pitcairn, and it harboured a deep, dark scandal. There wouldn't be a girl on Pitcairn once they reached the age of 10 that would still have heard it.

It just happens to all of them. I'm journalist Luke Jones, and for almost two years, I've been investigating a shocking story that has left deep scars on generations of women and girls from Pitcairn. When there's nobody watching, nobody going to report it, people will get away with what they can get away with. In the Pitcairn Trials, I'll be uncovering a story of abuse and the fight for justice that has brought a unique, lonely Pacific island

to the brink of extinction. Listen to the Pitcairn Trials exclusively on Wondery+. Join Wondery in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Hot shot Australian attorney Nicola Gaba was born into legal royalty. Her specialty? Representing some of the city's most infamous gangland criminals. However, while Nicola held the underworld's darkest secrets, the most dangerous secret was her own. She's going to all the major groups within Melbourne's underworld,

and she's informing on them all. I'm Marsha Clark, host of the new podcast, Informants Lawyer X. In my long career in criminal justice as a prosecutor and defense attorney, I've seen some crazy cases, and this one belongs right at the top of the list. She was addicted to the game she had created. She just didn't know how to stop. Now, through dramatic interviews and access, I'll reveal the truth behind one of the world's most shocking legal scandals. Listen to Informant's Lawyer X exclusively on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

And listen to more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad free right now. Lori Vallow didn't waste any time, says reporter Morgan Lowe. Less than two months after her estranged husband, Charles Vallow, was shot dead, she packed up her two kids and moved to Rexburg, Idaho, home of that author and podcaster, Chad Daybell. I tell more about my two near-death experiences and how that prompted me to write my novels. A known voice among doomsday preppers. They believe that the end of the world is coming and it is coming soon. And that it is incumbent upon them to prepare for it. And that means stockpiling food and supplies so that they can survive until they are taken to heaven.

Reportedly, Laurie believed the end of times had a date, July 22nd, 2020, and that she had been ordained to lead the Chosen Ones. In her mind, there were 144,000 people that were going to survive Armageddon. She had been appointed to gather the remaining members of the Chosen. April says Lori tried to recruit her as one of the Chosen, but it would have come at a heavy price, her two boys.

What did being a Chosen One entail? Basically that I would need to separate myself from my children and join her and find the other chosen ones so that we could all be together. I respectfully declined her offer because that was just going too far. In early September, Lori, Tylee and JJ moved into this townhouse in Rexburg. Her brother, Alex Cox, moved into this same complex. Alex and Lori had a really close relationship. I think it was more than brother who looks after sister. I think it was more of brother who was the enforcer, who punished people, who crossed sister. In 2007, long before Alex shot and killed Charles,

he attacked Lori's third husband, Joe Ryan, with a taser gun and was sentenced to 90 days in jail. Lori sort of viewed Alex as the destroyer of bad things in her eyes. He was there to take care of the problems. That's what makes this now famous picture of Tylee so terrifying to so many. It was taken on September 8th, about a week after they arrived in Idaho, says private eye Rich Robertson. There are photographs that show her and JJ and Alex in Yellowstone Park. And that was the last time she was seen. And the key there is that Alex was there.

We know JJ left the park that day. These pictures from a neighbor's doorbell camera show him nine days later. We also know he attended school until September 23rd. On the 24th, Lori told JJ's teachers she was going to homeschool him. That's the last anybody saw him. The following week, Lori bought a $36 ring on Amazon. The next day, she reportedly shopped online

for a wedding dress. It would soon be clear who the intended groom was. Chad Daybell. Most of the arrows point to them having a relationship while they were still married to other people. Charles Vallow was now gone, but when Lori bought that ring, Chad's wife of 29 years, Tammy Daybell, was still very much alive. All that changed just 17 days later. 49-year-old Tammy Daybell died unexpectedly. Tammy's death was odd from the beginning. Family said she died in her sleep. They didn't want an autopsy performed. She was buried in Utah.

Approximately two weeks later, Chad Daybell married Lori Vallow in Hawaii. They did more than just start new lives. They reinvented their old ones, telling Chad's parents that Lori was an empty nester. But then the facade came crashing down when JJ's grandparents in Louisiana, Kay and Larry Woodcock, could take it no more. Every time Grandma Kay Woodcock would call,

there would be a different excuse about where the kids were. And finally said, something is weird here. She had heard enough excuses, and she finally reached out to the police. In late November, over two months after the children were last seen, the Rexburg police knocked on Lori's door to check on the kids. Lori said they weren't there. Lori told them that the kids were staying with a friend of hers down in Arizona. Arizona authorities then went to that friend's house, who told them J.J. and Tylee were not there. So at that point, somebody was lying, and it was most likely Lori.

But she wasn't the only one. When questioned by police, detectives noted that Chad acted as if he didn't know Lori very well. Chad left out one crucial detail, that he and Lori had been married for three weeks. These lies were starting to catch up with Chad and Lori. At that point, Rexburg police executed a search warrant, but they were gone. They had left town. The police quickly issued a statement that the children's lives were in danger. At that point, everything changed. Lori was about to become one of the most hated women in America. I've heard things said about Lori that none of them are true. This mob mentality of Lori just hung in a public square basically is what it feels like. It's bizarre. There are twists and turns,

and police now are asking for anyone's help who may have information, so listen up. You may know something. Say hi. When news hit that these two smiling siblings disappeared and their mother never reported them missing, people the world over were transfixed by the bizarre story of the cult mom and her missing kids. Armies of citizen cyber sleuths came together online. Rexburg mom Deanne Carter is one of them. What is it about this story that brings together so many people from so many different backgrounds from all over the world?

It's these two children. People connect. You want to help. You want to do what you can. Their group is 14,000 strong and growing, says Annie Southam. With so many people with so many different areas of expertise putting those pieces together, hopefully the whole puzzle can kind of be solved. On the home front, JJ's grandparents, Larry and Kay Woodcock, launched a public crusade. It breaks my heart. It's killing my soul. I just want those kids back. Yes, Papa. I just want those kids back. Yes, Papa. As family, friends, and strangers were begging for answers,

Lori and Chad were in Hawaii enjoying an extended honeymoon. There's some stuff that disgusts me, like their pictures on the beach where he's playing the ukulele and she's dancing around in her dress. But as this case started building steam, their ability to live a normal life there started to erode. They had trouble just going outside their front door because they didn't know if they were going to run into investigators or journalists. Lori, Nate Eaton with East Idaho News. Can you tell me where your kids are? East Idaho News reporter Nate Eaton tracked them down at a local resort. There's people around the country praying for your children,

praying for you guys. Why don't you give us answers? That's great. That's great. That's great that they're praying for you, praying for your kids. What? That's great that they're praying for you, praying for your kids, what? On January 25th, 2020, Lori was ordered to produce the children to Idaho authorities in five days. She ignored it. So she's placed under arrest. She's taken into custody in Kauai. Lori was charged with three misdemeanors and two felony counts of desertion and non-support of dependent children. A devastating blow to Lori's mother, Janice Cox, and sister, Summer Shifflett.

Janice spoke to her daughter after the arrest. When you asked her, how are my grandchildren doing, what did she say? What did she say? As far as I can remember, she said, you know me, Mom. The kids are fine. Deep down, you do believe that? I did believe it, yes.

She said the same thing to me. We know there's a whole other side to this story. Janice and Summer sat down with us for their first television interview to try to tell us that story. Janice and Summer sat down with us for their first television interview to try to tell us that story. A story, they say, began almost a year ago, back in Arizona. After Charles had died, Lori had been continuously threatened, and she wanted to go somewhere safe. She didn't want to tell any of us where she was going because she was being followed and threatened. Threatened by who? By people who loved Charles and want revenge for his death. Charles's family say there never were any threats, not even close. But Janice and Summer say Lori was so scared she fled to Idaho to protect herself and her children. They believe she could be hiding them now to keep them safe.

I don't know all of her reasons for doing what she's doing, but I know she has the reasons. But that still doesn't explain why Lori was off in Hawaii dancing on the beach with Chad Daybell while her children were nowhere to be found. Something's not adding up here. Where are they? Where is JJ and Tylee? It's a great question. We would love to know the answer to that. We don't know, but we know we are very confident that Lori would never harm her children. She's the best person I know. She's just the kindest, loving person that there is. They say the real Lori is nothing like the doomsday zealot Charles wrote about in his

divorce papers. Is Lori part of some strange cult? No. No. Not that we know of. No. She's not preparing for the end of the world. She doesn't believe that she is leading the 144,000. No. She has never said the end of the

world is going to happen in July. That has never come from her mouth or lips ever. A lot of the things that have been reported, any small truths that are in there have been twisted, but most of them are flat out not even true. For example, the police reported no one saw or heard from JJ after September 23rd. But Janice says she called Lori on October 1st, a full week later, and could hear JJ playing in the background. She gave us her phone records that showed a 97-minute call. He was alive and well. How do you know that, though? Because I know JJ. No one's going to pretend to be JJ.

At one point, she says he actually got on the phone and said, hi, Mimi, his nickname for her. You spoke with him on the phone? Yes, and I heard him, and he was out playing. And he just takes the phone, you know, and he knows, you know, he knows who we are. So, you know, he still knew I'm Mimi. You know, he still knew me, Mimi.

The Rexburg police aren't commenting on the call. But Janice and Summer want to set the record straight on something else, or rather someone else. Their son and brother, Alex Cox, Lori's so-called enforcer, the man who shot and killed Charles Vallow. Is Alex the henchman here? No, he's not. Alex was the most easygoing, relaxed, hilarious type of person. There's nothing about him that was a hitman. But we may never know the true story. On December 12th, Alex Cox suddenly

passed out and later died, an autopsy determined of natural causes. But we're still awaiting the autopsy results in another death. Tammy Daybell's body was exhumed two months after being buried to perform toxicology tests. And why do you run a toxicology test? Because you're looking for drugs or you are looking for poison. And why would they be looking for poison? Because they're investigating the possibility that she was murdered. possibility that she was murdered. What started as a hunt for two missing children expanded into something much bigger and even darker. And despite what her family believes, it wasn't looking good for the former beauty queen, says Morgan Lowe. Looking at these cases separately, you begin to

see that there is a common denominator, and that common denominator is Lori Vallow. She has a dead husband. She has two missing children. She has a new husband who has a dead wife. She is the factor that connects all of these separate cases together. Do you think Lori really did hide Tylee and JJ? Hear from cult expert Flora Jessup on Facebook at 48 Hours. As a kid growing up in Chicago, there was one horror movie I was too scared to watch. It was called Candyman. It was about this supernatural killer who would attack

his victims if they said his name five times into a bathroom mirror. But did you know that the movie Candyman was partly inspired by an actual murder? I was struck by both how spooky it was, but also how outrageous it was. Listen to Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder, early and ad-free on Wondery Plus and the Wondery app. Have you ever wondered who created that bottle of sriracha that's living in your fridge? Or why nearly every house in America has at least one game of Monopoly? Introducing The Best Idea Yet, a brand new podcast from Wondery and T-Boy about the surprising origin stories of the products you're obsessed with and the bold risk-takers who brought them to life.

Like, did you know that Super Mario, the best-selling video game character of all time, only exists because Nintendo couldn't get the rights to Popeye? Or Jack, that the idea for the McDonald's Happy Meal first came from a mom in Guatemala? From Pez dispensers to Levi's 501s to Air Jordans, discover the surprising stories of the most viral products. Plus, we guarantee that after listening, you're going to dominate your next dinner party. So follow The Best Idea Yet on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Best Idea Yet early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus. It's just the best idea yet.

yet. On March 5th, 2020, five months after police say Lori Vallow Daybell's children were last seen, she's in that plane. She was extradited from Hawaii to a tiny airport in Rexburg, Idaho, to face child abandonment charges. Morgan Lowe was there. She gets out of the plane, and she's wearing a bulletproof vest and surrounded by officers, and they whisk her into this vehicle. After being one of the first reporters in the country on this story, Morgan had Lori within earshot. The SUV stopped right in front of me, and I find myself four inches away from Lori.

Lori, where are your kids? How come you're not telling anybody where your kids are? And she looked through the window with this weird sort of blank expression on her face and then turned her head. The day of Lori's initial appearance in Rexburg, the courtroom was jam-packed, and Lori walks in, and she's wearing this orange and white striped jail outfit and this red lipstick. It was such an odd sight to see.

Miss Daybell, do you understand what count one alleges as well as the maximum penalties? Yes. I don't like to hate on people or talk badly, but it did make me mad. She had done herself up, made herself look good, but still nothing about the children. It's also a felony under Idaho Code 18401. Kay is trying to hold on to hope, but her mind keeps going back to something Charles told her Lori said about JJ.

She didn't want JJ anymore. JJ was too much for her to handle. Adding to Kay's concerns, police discovered a bottle of prescription medicine for JJ's autism with 17 pills remaining. The last time it had been filled was months before JJ disappeared. And remember JJ's service dog, Bailey, the one he loves so much? Lori returned him three weeks before JJ disappeared, which still baffles the dog's trainer. At first, I said, I don't think I heard you right. Who would take a very cold and callous person, which I think that's who she is. Lori's sister and mother say that's nonsense.

They claim Lori stockpiled JJ's medication so he didn't need that pill bottle found by police. And as for Bailey... I don't think Bailey's an issue as far as JJ is concerned. There's a lot going on that just doesn't add up. I do know about the dog. I was over there a lot. Charles loved Bailey. JJ was not really attached to him. I was over there a lot. Charles loved Bailey. JJ was not really attached to it.

He was fine without him. But in the months after JJ and Tylee went missing, Lori made several trips to a Rexburg, Idaho storage unit. You can see her here on the surveillance camera. And inside that unit? Things that belong to the kids. B, bicycles, toys, things like that. It's pretty tough to come to a different conclusion other than the kids were no longer around and no longer needed this stuff. Even more damning than what Lori left behind may be what she took with her to Hawaii. JJ and Tylee's birth certificates,

Tylee's bank card, which had been used since her disappearance, and Tylee's cell phone. I don't know any teenage girl that would be okay with being separated from her phone. How about Tylee's cell phone? She told me in September that she had confiscated Tylee's cell phone. Janice and Summer say Lori didn't want Tylee to be tracked through her phone. She was always fearful of those who she said threatened her and the kids. She put her daughter first all the time. She loves her daughter and her children.

And she always was like putting Tylee's and JJ's needs ahead of her own. But by April 2020, the investigation had moved beyond the children's disappearance. Authorities were looking into Lori and Chad for murder and Tammy Daybell's death. He came at me with a bat. And they were taking a harder look at the death of Charles Vallow. Maybe this wasn't self-defense. Maybe this was a setup. Stand over there for just a second.

And I can tell you that people who know Charles or knew Charles believe that he was lured to that house to be murdered. April, for one, has never believed that story about Charles hitting Alex in the head with a baseball bat. One, because Charles wasn't a violent person. The second being that Charles had been a baseball player and an athlete in college. that Charles had been a baseball player and an athlete in college. And if he had hit Alex with the bat in the way that they claimed that he did, Alex would have been a lot more injured.

Is there a laceration you want me to call paramedics? No, I'd really like some water, though. Charles was afraid of Lori, according to those divorce documents. He wrote about what he thought might happen to him, and he was rightfully afraid of that. He wasn't scared of Lori. Even the whole time he was filing for divorce and all those things, he was begging for her to come back.

Today, it is JJ's grandparents who are doing the begging. I have a tendency to get very emotional when I talk about the children. I get extremely emotional when I talk about JJ. JJ is my heart. The Woodcocks are offering a $20,000 reward for any information leading to the children's return. While they wait and hope, the FBI has turned its attention to Yellowstone, the last place Tylee was seen. Yellowstone is one of the last truly wild places left in this country. is one of the last truly wild places left in this country.

There are many ways to die in Yellowstone Park. I was crying on the staircase. Baby, please don't go. Are you taking a video of my child? These were the good times, the silly times. Oh, look at how handsome. The cherished moments between friends and family. JJ! Say hi!

Happy family. It's still hard for Echo Itaiho to believe that life went from forever to gone. It's so sad. This whole thing, all of it, is just heartbreaking. Echo says she and her

daughter, Vysia, Tylee's best friend, are praying she and JJ are still alive, hidden somewhere safe to ride out the apocalypse. The only place they could be is in a compound or a bunker or someplace completely off the grid.

Janice, do you think they're in a bunker somewhere? I think that's possible. But with all the headlines, accusations Lori believes in zombies, and Lori's past talk of demons and possession, April Raymond is fearing the worst. Do you think Lori Vallow is capable of killing her two kids? The Lori I knew, absolutely not. But I don't know what the real Lori Vallow is capable of. Lori allegedly asked Chad Daybell to judge her children in terms of dark and light spirits. This recently uncovered email from Chad to Lori in October 2018 gives Tylee a rating of 4.1 D. D meaning dark. Sadly, it's not surprising to April. It pains me to say, but she would say that Tylee had a dark spirit.

would say that Tylee had a dark spirit. The FBI is reportedly about to launch a dark mission of its own, a search in Yellowstone National Park, the last place Tylee Ryan was seen. Yellowstone expert and 48 Hours consultant Aaron Teasdale. Yellowstone Park is a very mysterious place. You've got places that are quite remote. So if you wanted to get away with something or hide something, Yellowstone is an excellent place for that. A possibility almost too terrible to consider, that theory that Tylee could have been pushed into one of Yellowstone's many boiling pools, the so-called hot pots. There are cases of people that have fallen into those and their bodies just completely dissolved. That's a really terrible thought. Aaron Teasdale is skeptical of this theory.

There's different acidities. There's different temperatures. If you don't pick the right pool, it's not necessarily going to work. But Yellowstone, with its rugged terrain and wild ways, is good at keeping its secrets, says Teasdale. If there is a dead thing in Yellowstone, the living community of the park will find it. Sometimes the bones will even get eaten. In a situation like this, it's entirely possible that there will be very little to find. Lori Vallow Daybell remains in jail in Rexburg, Idaho. In May 2020, she appeared in court to ask a judge to reduce her million-dollar bond, wearing a mask due to the coronavirus pandemic.

I am not at all inclined to revisit Judge Edmonds' decision. That request was denied. Lori's lawyer, Mark Means, spoke after the hearing. Regardless of how you feel about religious beliefs, personal beliefs, actions, inaction, she's entitled to a defense. We maintain her innocence. Chad Daybell has not been charged with any crime and appears to stand by Lori. JJ's grandmother, Kay, is now appealing to Chad on Facebook, writing, show us if Tylee and JJ are okay.

And I'm begging you, Chad, end this now. In a little over a week, it will be JJ's eighth birthday. Every night before you go to bed, you know you're waking up to this reality. What do you think before you fall asleep? I pray. We just pray about it. That's all we can do. Tylee and JJ's other grandmother says she's doing the same thing. We love Tylee and JJ with all of our hearts. As the search for Tylee and JJ continues, their silent presence hovers over the town of Rexburg. Two children who vanished into thin air

with no sign of life, no sign of death. If you have any information about Tylee and JJ, contact Rexburg Police, 208-359-3000. Why do you think Lori won't say where the children are? 459-3000. Why do you think Lori won't say where the children are? Hear about Yellowstone's so-called zone of death at 48hours.com. Right now it seems as if everything is unpredictable.

We're all stuck at home. And like you, I'm feeling a bit helpless right now. But I want you to know we are here for you. All working together. You are not alone. That's right. Because we're all in this. And we're all in this. We're all All working together. You are not alone. That's right. Because we're all in this. And we're all in this.

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