Parents of 2 missing Idaho kids call themselves 'loving' and 'devoted' after family says they're part of religious cult
IDAHO: Parents of the two missing Idaho children released a statement where they described themselves as 'loving' and 'devoted' people. This comes after the couple is named 'persons of interest' in the case.
There is a massive multi-state police search ongoing to try and locate the missing children — Joshua 'JJ' Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 17, who were last seen in Rexburg in September. The children's mother, Lori Daybell, and her new husband Chad Daybell never reported the children missing. Lori had married Chad within a few weeks of his former wife dying under mysterious circumstances.
The couple has been named as 'persons of interest' in the disappearance of the children and has also been accused of being in a religious cult.
According to the police, Lori and Chad had constantly lied about the location of the children. The couple's attorney, Sean Bartholick released a statement saying, "Chad Daybell is a loving husband and has the support of his children in this matter. Lori Daybell is a devoted mother and resents assertions to the contrary," East Idaho News reported.
"We look forward to addressing the allegations once they have moved beyond speculation and rumor," the couple added.
Investigators are of the opinion that the children could be in grave danger and suspect that their disappearance may be linked to the death of Chad's ex-wife, Tammy Daybell.
Two of Lori's former partners have also died over the past two years. Her former husband Joseph Anthony Ryan, Tylee's father, died in 2018 after suffering a heart attack.
In July, her husband Charles Vallow, was fatally shot by her brother Alex Cox in Arizona. Cox himself died in December the day after Tammy's body was exhumed to conduct an autopsy.
Brandon Boudreaux who married into Lori's family in 2008 believes that the four deaths are linked and the children's disappearances may be linked to her new religious beliefs. As reported by Fox13, Boudreaux shared, "I spent the last 11 years of my life spending time with Lori and her now-deceased husband Charles."
"I don't know what happened to those kids, but I know there's people who do, and they’re not talking… I love them both. I hope they're safe. They're both just innocent and they didn't deserve to be involved in any of this," Boudreaux continued. He added that his wife Melani, who is Lori's niece, had followed her aunt in joining a cult.
Boudreaux also believes that it is no coincidence that so many people close to Lori and Chad have died in such a short span of time.
As reported by Fox10, another family member supported the claims that the children's disappearance may be linked to Lori joining a cult.
"To think that within the last two years she has completely changed into a monster, I'm making an understatement. Something happened to her. She just turned off and once she got involved with that cult with Daybell, she just turned off the person we knew just went away," the kid's grandmother, Kay Woodcock shared.