The remains were found when police and FBI agents executed a search warrant at Chad Daybell's home on Tuesday.
The remains found on Chad Daybell's property are those of missing children Joshua "JJ" Vallow and Tylee Ryan, the children's extended families confirmed Wednesday.
"The Woodcocks and the Ryans are confirming that the human remains found by law enforcement on Chad Daybell’s property are indeed our beloved JJ and Tylee. We are filled with unfathomable sadness that these two bright stars were stolen from us and only hope that they died without pain or suffering," JJ's grandparents, Kay and Larry Woodcock, and JJ and Tylee's brother and sister-in-law, Colby and Kelsee Ryan, said in the statement.
"Once officially confirmed, statements from the Rexburg Police, the medical examiner and the FBI will be released. We ask that you respect our family’s privacy while we grieve – we have only just been told of the loss of our loved ones and need time to process. We are not granting interviews at this time and hope you all understand that this is the worst news we will ever get in our lives and want to be left alone for the time being."
JJ, 8, and Tylee, 17, have been missing since September and their disappearance sparked a nationwide search and a multi-state FBI investigation. It also resulted in charges against the children's mother, Lori Vallow Daybell, and her fifth husband, Chad.
Chad is being held in an Idaho jail on $1 million bond as he faces two counts of felony destruction, alteration or concealment of JJ and Tylee's remains. Investigators found the remains while executing a search warrant on Chad's home on Tuesday, police said, and Chad was arrested. Aerial images showed officers bringing in backhoes and digging in the yard of Chad's home.
Lori is also being held on $1 million bond at an Idaho jail, facing two counts of felony desertion of JJ and Tylee, as well as misdemeanor charges of resisting and obstructing an officer, solicitation of a crime and contempt, according to the Madison County, Idaho prosecutor's office. Lori has pleaded not guilty, and both Lori and Chad deny all allegations of wrongdoing.
The children went missing shortly after Lori moved to Rexburg to be closer to Chad. Lori's fourth husband, Charles Vallow, was shot and killed by her brother, Alex Cox, on July 11. Alex claimed he fired in self-defense in the incident and was not charged. Two months later, Lori moved JJ and Tylee to Idaho.
Tylee was last seen on Sept. 8 during a trip to Yellowstone National Park with her mother, JJ and uncle Alex.
JJ was last seen Sept. 23 at Kennedy Elementary School in Rexburg.
Melanie Gibb, a close friend of Chad and Lori's, said she stayed in Lori's home in Rexburg from Sept. 19 to Sept. 23, a crucial period of time that is after investigators say Tylee was last seen and before JJ went missing. She said while JJ was at the house during her visit, she never saw Tylee and Lori never spoke about her.
"As I arrived on the Thursday, [Lori] had said that [JJ] had turned into a zombie the day before I got there," Gibb told EastIdahoNews.com. "And she was pointing out behaviors of his like, 'Look how he's doing this, that's unusual. Or, 'Look how he's doing that.' She was trying to create uncertainty in me about what I saw [in] his behavior."
Gibb said when she left Rexburg on Sept. 23, Lori told her JJ was going to go stay with his paternal grandparents, Kay and Larry Woodcock. On Sept., Lori unenrolled JJ from school, explaining she planned to homeschool him, the school's principal told EastIdahoNews.com.
Once JJ was unenrolled, he was no longer tracked by the school, because "Idaho does not regulate or monitor home school education," according to the state's Department of Education.
It wasn't until Rexburg police officers went to Lori's house to perform a welfare check on JJ at Kay and Larry's request that authorities realized the children were missing. Before that on Nov. 26 welfare check, Lori had never reported JJ or Tylee missing, and afterwards, repeatedly refused to help investigators find her missing children, according to police.
Chad and Lori then left for island of Kauai, where they lived together until Lori's arrest on Feb. 20. Lori was extradited back to Idaho to face charges and has been in jail ever since.
Chad is due to appear in court for a preliminary hearing July 1 and 2. Lori is due to appear in court for her preliminary hearing July 9 and 10.
Neither Chad's attorney, John Prior, nor Lori's attorney, Mark Means, responded to Inside Edition Digital's requests for comment.
The Rexburg Police Department asks anyone with information regarding JJ and Tylee's whereabouts or welfare to contact the department at 1-208-359-3000 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) at 1-800-THE-LOST.
RELATED STORIES
