Police: 2 missing Idaho kids may be tied to suspicious death

REXBURG, Idaho (AP) - Authorities are searching for two children tied to a suspicious death case in Idaho.

Joshua Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 17, have not been seen since September 2019, according to a Rexburg police department news release. Their mother, Lori Vallow, is the second wife of Chad Daybell.

Rexburg police said the parents never reported the kids missing, have repeatedly lied about where their children are and aren’t cooperating with the investigation.

The search began in November when police tried to do a welfare check on the 7-year-old boy after a relative called because they hadn’t talked to him since September. The boy was adopted and has special needs.

The parents initially said the boy was in Arizona, but police said that was a lie.

Though Rexburg police haven’t disclosed the exact nature of the connection, authorities note the new marriage happened shortly after Daybell’s first wife, Tammy Daybell, was found dead at home in October.

Initially thought to be a natural death, Tammy Daybell’s remains have since been exhumed in Utah where she was buried. An autopsy is being conducted in December as authorities now investigate what may be suspicious circumstances behind the woman’s death.

Police are asking anyone with information about the children to call Rexburg police or report it to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.