Cult mom Lori Vallow’s son makes chilling statement on anniversary of day his siblings were found cut up and burnt
LORI Vallow's only surviving child says a piece of him will be forever lost following the murder of his two younger siblings who were found buried in shallow graves two years ago.
Tylee Ryan, 16, and Joshua "JJ" Vallow, 7, were found dead on June 9, 2020, near a burn pit in the backyard of a home belonging to Lori Vallow's Doomsday author husband, Chad Daybell.
The tragic discovery in Salem, Idaho, brought an end to a nine-month investigation to find the two children, who both vanished weeks apart in September 2019.
Lori had long maintained to authorities, and other family members, that Tylee and JJ were safe and living with relatives in Arizona though no trace of the pair could be found.
Police would later allege that Lori and Chad had the two children murdered as part of a depraved ritual, having apparently grown convinced that the pair had been possessed by evil spirits.
Two years on and Tylee and JJ's older brother, Colby Ryan, 26, told The US Sun in an emotional interview that there isn't a day that goes by that he doesn't think about his slain siblings.
Read More on Lori Vallow
"I miss them all the time," said Colby, a father of two. "I wish they were here to experience my family and I wish we could just go back to a place where we were having so much fun all the time.
"I just miss their presence; I miss being in the house with them, having fun with them, and just sharing our lives together."
SICK CRIMES
In the months before his siblings were found dead, Colby had pleaded with Lori after her arrest in February 2020 for information about where they were but was chillingly told the same thing each time: "All will be revealed soon."
Four months after visiting his mother behind bars, the horrific truth of Lori's plot would be revealed with a gutwrenching end, following a search of Chad Daybell's home in Salem, Idaho.
Most read in The Sun
In the backyard of the property, police found two sets of human remains buried in shallow graves that were soon confirmed to belong to Tylee and JJ.
Tylee's remains had been dismembered and burned, while JJ was found buried in his red pajamas and wrapped in plastic bags with tape covering his mouth, arms, and wrists.
Chad Daybell was taken into custody the same day and both he and Lori were later indicted by a grand jury on a number of charges related to the kids' deaths, including first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
Lori's devoted brother Alex Cox was also believed to be involved in their murders. However, he escaped charges after he died suddenly in December 2019 from what were believed to be "natural causes" spurred by high blood pressure and blood clots wedged in his lungs.
Investigators believe the two children were killed by Cox at the direction of Vallow and Daybell, who had allegedly become convinced to two children had been possessed by "dark spirits" and therefore needed to be purged.
'LIVING IN A GRAVEYARD'
For Colby, learning of the horrific way in which his siblings' lives ended was nothing short of devastating; harder still was coming to terms with the fact members of his own family were allegedly responsible.
"In those moments, I was just so angry. I was so hurt. I was uncomfortable. I was sick to my stomach all the time and it was just this weight on me," he said.
In this state of overwhelming anger and hurt, Colby said he soon became consumed by dark thoughts, including a desire to enact murderous revenge on his mom and Chad.
But over time, after leaning heavily on his faith, Colby said he learned to let go of the anger and reluctantly accept the outcome of the tragedy so he could attempt to move on with his life.
"I couldn't just keep living in the past, no matter how hard it was to let go," said Colby.
"I just kept feeling like I was living in this graveyard and I'm not moving anywhere. I feel like a lot of people can get stuck in that phase and it's just miserable.
"You can't live a full life because you're always thinking about the past.
"So I love them and miss them all the time. But I also have to take an acceptance that they're not here.
Colby added: "Full disclosure, it's incredibly difficult to have trauma head-on, but it's worth it when you get out the other side - you're healed and you have a way to tell your story and that can help other people.
"But the anger was probably the most difficult thing to get over."
A 'PIECE FOREVER LOST'
Colby recently released a self-published book, , in which he discusses his faith and how turning to God helped him overcome the traumas of his childhood and beyond.
While he insists now he's over his feelings of resentment and anger towards his mom - having even taken the previously unimaginable step of forgiving her last year - Colby says he recognizes a piece of himself has been forever lost in the wake of Tylee and JJ's deaths.
"A part of me was attached with them," he explained. "I'm still their brother, they're still my siblings, but they're not here.
"So that part of me had broken, that was shattered and unfortunately will never be able to be put back together again.
"[But] it's almost like I've been refined and repurposed from before. So when I pieced myself back together again, I was a different person.
"I'm not even close to the same person that experienced those things because it's almost impossible to go through something traumatic and come back the same when a part of you that was stripped out is now gone."
I just miss their presence; I miss being in the house with them, having fun with them, and just sharing our lives together."
Colby Ryan
For now, Colby is focusing on trying to produce something good out of the tragedy, seeking to continue his siblings' legacies in a positive light by helping to guide others out of the throes of crisis and trauma.
"It's crazy to see old photos of them now and they're not here," Colby added. "But again it comes back to having to accept it, which is the hardest part.
"I believe there's a chance of seeing them again in Heaven and having a relationship with them again.
"But the part of me that was attached with them has gone.
"The old Colby has definitely gone."
LOOMING DOOMSDAY TRIAL
Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell are both still awaiting trial for the murders of Tylee, JJ, and Daybell's late wife Tammy, who died in mysterious circumstances in October 2019.
Lori's trial was slated to begin this October but last month a judge decided to delay proceedings by 90 days to coincide the trial with Chad Daybell's on January 9, 2023.
Vallow and Daybell have pleaded not guilty and could face the death penalty if they are convicted.
Despite Lori's claims of innocence, Colby says there is no doubt in his mind that she's "100%" responsible for all she stands accused of.
"My mom knew exactly what was going on," Colby said. "As a parent, you're responsible for your kids' safety, especially if they're minors. She was responsible for her kids. She was responsible for what happened.
"And I know she was a part of it," he claimed. "And that hurts a lot to say."
Colby said while he has no desire to have any sort of relationship with his mom moving forward, he admitted it's still difficult to hear she could potentially be sentenced to death.
"It's hard to hear that they would do that with my mom," he said. "But again, it's out of my hands and it always has been."
Colb typically refrains from following the coverage of his mom's trial now, again accepting that her fate is out of his hands.
Reliving the harrowing details of his siblings' deaths will also not change the fact they're no longer here, he said.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Read More On The Sun
"I've given up the fact that no matter what happens, it's not going to change anything," Colby said.
"So I know they're in jail, I know they can't hurt anybody, and that's the best I can possibly ask for."
