Bail set at $1 million for Chad Daybell, arrested after child remains found in disappearance of wife Lori Vallow’s kids
KATE FELDMAN
Less than 24 hours after he was arrested, Chad Daybell appeared remotely in front of an Idaho judge Wednesday to face charges related to his wife’s missing children.
Judge Faren Eddins issued a $1 million bail for Daybell, who appeared on Zoom from jail with attorney John Prior, alongside Prosecutor Ron Wood.
“Should he bail out, he has strong incentive to flee,” Wood said during the hearing.
Prior had argued that Daybell “has every intention to stay in the community and address these charges” and had requested a $100,000 bail.
Daybell, 51, was taken into custody Tuesday after police found human remains on his Salem, Idaho, property, according to the Rexburg Police Department. Investigators have confirmed that the remains belong to two different people, but identifications are pending autopsies.
Wood said Wednesday, however, that the remains belong to children, and said that one was “particularly egregious.”
Lori Vallow’s children, 8-year-old JJ and 17-year-old Tylee Ryan have been missing since September and their disappearance dates coincide with the allegations against Daybell, who married Vallow in November.
Daybell has been charged with two counts of destruction, alteration or concealment of evidence, a felony charge.
According to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday, Daybell “did wilifully conceal and/or did aid and abet another to willfully conceal human remains, knowing that said human remains were about to be produced, used and/or discovered as evidence in felony proceeding, inquiry and/or investigation authorized by law, with the intent to prevent it from being so produced, used and/or discovered" on or after Sept. 22, the day before JJ was last seen.
He’s also accused of “destroy(ing), alter(ing) and/or conceal(ing) human remains” or abet in the act on or after Sept. 8, the last day Tylee was seen publicly.
Daybell faces up to five years behind bars and a $10,000 fine for each charge.
If he is released on bail, Daybell is required to stay within Bonneville, Jefferson, Madison and Fremont counties and will be equipped with an ankle monitor. He is not allowed to have contact with the families of the victims or the witnesses in his case.
A booking photo provided by the Rexburg (Idaho) Police Department shows Chad Daybell, who was arrested Tuesday, June 9, 2020, on suspicion of concealing or destroying evidence after local and federal investigators searched his property, according to the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office. Authorities said they uncovered human remains at Daybell's home Tuesday as they investigated the disappearance of his new wife's two children — a case that's drawn global attention for its ties to two other mysterious deaths and the couple's doomsday beliefs.
In this aerial photo, investigators search for human remains at Chad Daybell's residence on Tuesday, June 9, 2020, in Salem, Idaho. Authorities say they uncovered human remains at Daybell's home as they investigated the disappearance of his new wife’s two children.
In this aerial photo, investigators search for human remains at Chad Daybell's residence on Tuesday, June 9, 2020, in Salem, Idaho.
In this aerial photo, investigators search for human remains at Chad Daybell's residence on Tuesday, June 9, 2020, in Salem, Idaho.
In this aerial photo provided by East Idaho News shows authorities investigating a home in Salem, Idaho, on Tuesday June 9, 2020.
In this photo provided by East Idaho News shows authorities outside a home after serving a warrant in Salem, Idaho, on Tuesday June 9, 2020.
Lori Vallow Daybell leaves the courtroom during her hearing on Friday, March 6, 2020, in Rexburg, Idaho. Daybell who is charged with felony child abandonment after her two children went missing nearly six months ago had her bond reduced to $1 million by an Idaho judge on Friday.
Kay Woodcock, center, and Larry Woodcock, right, address the media outside court at a hearing for Lori Vallow Daybell on Friday, March 6, 2020, in Rexburg, Idaho.
Lori Vallow Daybell, front, second right, and her defense team wait to leave the courtroom during her hearing on Friday, March 6, 2020, in Rexburg, Idaho. Daybell who is charged with felony child abandonment after her two children went missing nearly six months ago had her bond reduced to $1 million by an Idaho judge on Friday.
Larry Woodcock, from left, Kay Woodcock and Brandon Boudreaux attend the hearing for Lori Vallow Daybell on Friday, March 6, 2020, in Rexburg, Idaho.
Lori Vallow appears in court in Lihue, Hawaii on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020. A judge ruled that bail will remain at $5 million for Vallow, also known as Lori Daybell, who was arrested in Hawaii over the disappearance of her two Idaho children. Vallow requested a hearing so the judge would consider a reduced bail. After the judge denied the request, her defense attorney, Craig De Costa, left, said she is waiving an extradition hearing, which had been scheduled for March 2. Kauai Prosecutor Justin Kollar said he will work with Idaho authorities on logistics for her departure.
Lori Vallow appears in court in Lihue, Hawaii A judge ruled that bail will remain at $5 million for Vallow, also known as Lori Daybell, who was arrested in Hawaii over the disappearance of her two Idaho children on Feb. 26, 2020.
Chad Daybell, Lori Vallow's current husband, walks into court for his wife's hearing on child abandonment and other charges in Lihue, Hawaii on Feb. 21, 2020.
In this undated file photos released by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children show missing children Joshua Vallow, left, and Tylee Ryan.
Lori Vallow, right, and her new husband, Chad Daybell, are wanted in the disappearance of the two children.
Vallow, 46, was arrested in February in Hawaii and has been charged with two felony counts of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children, as well as lesser counts of resisting and obstructing an officer, solicitation of a crime and contempt. She’s also being held on a $1 million bond.
A series of mysterious deaths has surrounded the newlyweds, including Daybell’s wife, Tammy, two weeks before he was married again, Vallow’s husband Charles and her brother, Alex Cox.
Daybell is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on July 1.
