Chad Daybell appeared in court Wednesday after he was charged with two new felonies in connection with the deaths of wife Lori Vallow’s children JJ and Tylee.
The ‘cult leader’ showed no emotion and spoke to answer only ‘yes’, ‘I do’ and ‘thank you’ to questions posed by the judge, as two counts of conspiracy to commit destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence were added to the existing charges against him.
This came one day after Vallow put on an emotional display in her court appearance Tuesday, wiping away tears as she was also charged with two new counts of conspiracy to commit destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence.
The ‘doomsday’ couple are already being held in custody in Idaho awaiting trial on various charges relating to the disappearance of Vallow’s son JJ, seven, and daughter Tylee, 17.
The children were last seen alive in September and the couple repeatedly told authorities they were safe, before their bodies were found in the yard of Daybell’s pet cemetery last month.
No one has been charged over the children’s deaths and it is not yet clear how they died.
Chad Daybell appeared in court Wednesday after he was charged with two new felonies in connection with the deaths of wife Lori Vallow’s children JJ and Tylee
The ‘cult leader’ showed no emotion and spoke to answer only ‘yes’, ‘I do’ and ‘thank you’ to questions posed by the judge, as two counts of conspiracy to commit destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence were added to the existing charges against him
Daybell appeared in Fremont County Court Wednesday via a Zoom call after an amended criminal complaint was filed by the state accusing him of conspiring with his wife to keep the bodies of her children hidden on his rural property.
Judge Faren Eddins said he was ‘redoing the initial appearance on the same case number’ after the state amended the charges Tuesday – one day after investigators carried out another search of his property.
It is not clear whether evidence found during Monday’s search led to the new charges being filed.
The conspiracy charges are different to those filed against him earlier this month, which were two felony counts of destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence.
Daybell, dressed in a shirt and tie, sat next to his attorney John Prior and stayed mostly silent during the virtual court appearance.
Prosecuting attorney Rob Wood was also present during the 13 minute court appearance.
A preliminary court hearing has been scheduled for August 3 and 4.
The ‘doomsday’ couple (pictured together) are already being held in custody in Idaho awaiting trial on charges of concealing evidence and neglecting Vallow’s son JJ, seven, and daughter Tylee, 17
JJ (left) and Tylee (right) were last seen alive in September and the couple repeatedly told authorities they were safe, before their bodies were found in the yard of Daybell’s pet cemetery last month. Tylee’s body was so badly burned when it was discovered that she had to be identified by her jawline, according to court records released Tuesday
Vallow had her court hearing in Fremont County Court Tuesday evening where the new charges were read to her – while her emotional adult son watched on and Wood and Eddins were also present.
The ‘cult mom’, who wore a long sleeve blue green top and a blue face mask during Tuesday’s court appearance, sat next to her attorney Mark Means and spoke only to answer ‘yes’ to confirm she understood the new charges, her rights and had received a copy of her arrest prior to the hearing.
At one point, the mother, who had repeatedly refused to say where her children were before the grim discovery of their remains, reached for a tissue and wiped away tears from her eyes.
Her eldest son and the distraught brother of JJ and Tylee, Colby Ryan, also joined the hearing remotely with his wife Kelsee by his side.
Ryan choked back tears and wiped his eyes as he listened to the charges read out against his mother.
There was some disagreement between Means and Wood after Wood said Vallow’s attorney had represented Daybell in the past.
Lori Vallow (bottom left) appeared in court Tuesday via a Zoom call on new charges – while her emotional adult son Colby Ryan (bottom right) watched on
At one point, the mother, who had repeatedly refused to say where her children were before the grim discovery of their remains this month, reached for a tissue and dabbed tears from her eyes
Eddins said he would make a decision over whether there was any conflict of interest in Means now representing Vallow.
Her next court hearing has been scheduled for August 10 and is expected to last for two days.
Vallow and Daybell each face up to five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine on each of the new felony counts, which Eddins said could be served consecutively or at the same time.
They are each being held on $1 million bail.
The distraught relatives of Tylee and JJ issued a joint statement Wednesday asking for privacy and thanking people for their support as they grieve.
‘We are utterly devastated trying to comprehend how our children, full of brilliant light and jubilance for life, ended at the hands of those who were supposed to love and protect them,’ the families wrote.
The families said they have faith in the judicial system and are confident justice will prevail.
Public memorial services will be held at some point in Rexburg, Idaho, where the kids last lived, Phoenix, their home before Idaho, and Lake Charles, Louisiana, where JJ’s grandparents live, they added.
The ‘cult’ mom appeared in Fremont County Court Tuesday evening via a Zoom call where the charges on two counts of conspiracy to commit destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence were read to her and her bond was set at $1 million
Her eldest son and the distraught brother of JJ and Tylee, Colby Ryan, also joined the hearing remotely with his wife Kelsee by his side
The bodies of JJ and Tylee were finally discovered June 9 – almost nine months since they were last seen alive – after police tracked cellphone data from Lori’s dead brother Alex Cox.
Cox died in December in mysterious circumstances too.
When police eventually dug up the bodies, seven-year-old JJ’s was easy to identify but Tylee’s was decomposed beyond recognition that she had to be identified by her jawline, court records released Tuesday reveal.
‘It was not possible to identify those remains by simply looking at them as they were too damaged by fire and dismemberment and no longer had any recognizable features,’ they read.
‘However, Dr. Glen Smith, an orthodontist and Deputy Coroner in the Ada County Coroner’s Office was able to identify these remains as belonging to Tylee Ryan by matching an irregular jawline with an X-ray of Tylee when she was alive,’ a police officer wrote about the discovery.’
JJ and Tylee, left, went missing in September and their bodies were found a few weeks ago after police tracked cell phone data from their uncle Alex Cox’s (right) cell phone. He died in December
Chad Daybell, 51, was arrested on June 9 and charged with two felony counts of destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence. Lori Vallow Daybell, has been in jail for the last four months, charged with desertion of children and three misdemeanors. Both remain in jail on $1million bail
The documents also reveal that cops asked Lori where JJ was after he was reported missing by relatives but that Lori lied. She then fled to Hawaii.
Lori was recorded on bodycam telling police her son was with her friend, Melanie Gibb, in Arizona, and that Tylee was living with her and attending BYU-Idaho.
Rexburg Police officers were seen at Daybell’s home in Salem on Monday around 1.15pm.
Daybell’s son Garth was seen moving boxes out the home in the days after his father’s arrest on June 9 as another child of the ‘cult leader’ prepared to move in.
It is not known if the new charges against Vallow and Daybell relate to Monday’s search.
Officers were seen entering the home and searching exterior buildings on the property including a shed and barn and entering the backyard with cameras.
The officers left around 2.50pm but did not disclose any details of their search or what they were looking for. Fremont County Sheriff’s deputies were assisting Rexburg Police in Monday’s search.
Madison County Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood had declined to comment on the warrant.
Monday’s investigation marked the third known time Rexburg Police have searched Daybell’s property. Monday’s search was on a much lower-scale than the warrant served at the same residence on June 9 which led to Daybell’s arrest.
At that investigation scene, dozens of officers flanked the home and surrounding roads were closed for two days as Daybell’s property was excavated and police discovered the remains of the two children.
Rexburg Police officers executed a third search warrant at Chad Daybell’s Salem, Idaho property on Monday afternoon. Investigators entered the home, were reportedly seen in the backyard with cameras and searched a shed and barn in the yard
Monday’s investigation marked the third known time Rexburg Police have searched Daybell’s property and is likely linked to the discovery of the remains of wife Lori Vallow’s missing children Joshua ‘JJ’ Vallow, seven, and Tylee Ryan, 17, in June
Daybell is pictured being placed in cuffs and arrested on June 9 following the grisly discover of the children’s remains
Chad Daybell’s adult son, Garth, was seen moving boxes in and out of the family home in Salem, Idaho, on June 11
The last known sighting of Tylee was on September 8, when she visited Yellowstone National Park with her family. JJ, who would have turned eight last month, was last seen two weeks later on September 23.
Vallow married Daybell less than two months after her kids vanished.
During the previous raid of Daybell’s home on January 3, authorities removed 43 items from the property and combed over several sections of the yard with metal detectors and rakes.
Daybell was arrested June 9 and charged with two felony counts of destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence.
Vallow has been in jail for the last four months, charged with desertion of children and three misdemeanors.
In this aerial photo, investigators search for human remains at Chad Daybell’s residence in the 200 block of 1900 East in Salem, Idaho on June 9
In this aerial photo, investigators search what appears to be a burn pit and dig near a patch of recently disturbed earth
Tylee was last seen on September 8 when she visited Yellowstone National Park with her family (pictured). JJ was last seen two weeks later on September 23
Vallow and Daybell – the prolific Doomsday author, alleged cult leader and former grave digger – had repeatedly refused to say where the children were but insisted that they were safe.
Authorities began searching for the children in late November after performing a welfare check ordered by concerned relatives who said they hadn’t spoken to seven-year-old JJ, who was autistic, in months.
When officers first went to Vallow’s home in Idaho on November 26, she told them that JJ was visiting relatives in Arizona.
Officers returned the following day and found that Vallow and the man she married weeks earlier, Daybell, had fled from the home.
Authorities say the couple have repeatedly lied about where JJ and Tylee are and refused to cooperate with the investigation.
Meanwhile, the Attorney General’s Office and Fremont County Sheriff’s Office are still investigating the death of Daybell’s wife Tammy, who mysteriously died at the Salem home in October.