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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Lori Daybell indicted in fourth husband’s death in Arizona. She moved to Idaho soon after

Lori Vallow Daybell, left, glances at the camera during her hearing March 6, 2020, in Rexburg, Idaho. In an indictment, Monday, May 24, 2021, Daybell, the mother of two children who were found dead in Idaho, in 2020, and her new husband were charged with murder in a case involving doomsday religious beliefs.  (John Roark/Idaho Post Register)
By Eric Grossarth Idaho Statesman

A grand jury in Arizona indicted Lori Vallow Daybell on Tuesday on a charge of conspiracy to commit murder in the death of her fourth husband, Charles Vallow.

The indictment alleges that on July 11, 2019, Daybell conspired with her brother, Alex Cox, to kill Charles Vallow, according to a Maricopa County Arizona Attorney’s Office news release. On the day Vallow died, Cox called 911, saying he shot Vallow in self-defense at a Chandler, Arizona, home.

Cox could not be charged since he died on Dec. 12, 2019, from what a medical examiner deemed to be natural causes.

“Complex, difficult cases of this nature take time to properly investigate and solve,” Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel said in a statement. “I appreciate the tremendous number of hours the dedicated officers of the Chandler Police Department have invested, and my office is equally committed to bringing those responsible for Charles Vallow’s death to justice.”

In the months following Vallow’s death, Lori moved to Rexburg to be near Chad Daybell. Chad’s wife, Tammy Daybell, died on Oct. 19, 2019, after Vallow’s kids, 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan, vanished on separate dates in September 2019.

The couple then married in November 2019 and fled to Hawaii, where they remained until Lori’s arrest in February 2020. Chad remained a free man until investigators discovered JJ and Tylee’s bodies buried on Chad’s Idaho property on June 9, 2020.

In May, a Fremont County grand jury indicted Lori and Chad on various charges, including first-degree murder, for the deaths of Tammy Daybell, and Tylee and Joshua “JJ” Vallow. Chad and Lori are also facing charges in relation to the destruction, alteration and concealment of the children’s bodies.

Lori’s case is stayed, or placed on hold, after a judge committed her to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. A mental health professional deemed her not competent to stand trial.

Chad is scheduled for a jury trial in November that is expected to last five weeks. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Jennifer Liewer, a spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, told EastIdahoNews.com that Daybell’s Idaho case will run its course before she faces the charge in Arizona.