Idaho mom of 2 missing children arrested in Hawaii

KAUAI, Hawaii — Police say Lori Vallow, the mother of two missing Idaho children, has been arrested in Kauai.

Vallow has been charged with two felony counts of nonsupport of dependent children and desertion. She was also charged with resisting or obstructing officers, criminal solicitation to commit a crime, and contempt of court, according to KTVB.

Her husband, Chad Daybell, was not arrested.

Vallow will face a judge, where she can choose to fight or waive extradition to Idaho according to KHQ.

She is currently being held in Kauai on $5 million bail.

Vallow is the mother of two children who have been missing since September.

According to police in Rexburg, Idaho, Vallow and her new husband, Daybell, have refused to disclose the whereabouts of 17-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow, the Idaho Statesman reported in January.

Joshua Vallow was described as a child with special needs who had been adopted by Lori Vallow. In a missing persons flier, officials warned that he might need medical attention.

Lori Vallow’s previous husband, Charles Vallow, died July 11, 2019, after being shot by her brother, according to KSAZ-TV. The shooting was determined to be in self-defense and no charges were filed, The Arizona Republic reported. The couple was estranged at the time of Charles Vallow’s death, KSAZ reported.

Daybell and Vallow married shortly after Daybell’s wife, Tammy Daybell, was found dead on Oct. 19, 2019, according to KSTU. Investigators initially said Tammy Daybell died of natural causes, but they have since exhumed her body and called the death suspicious, the television station reported.

Family members told KSTU that Lori Vallow joined what they described as a religious doomsday cult with Chad Daybell, a self-published author whose work focuses on religion, the end of the world and near-death experiences.

Cox Media Group