Lori Vallow Daybell’s Only Surviving Child Says What Happened To His Murdered Sister "Not Even Human"
Lori Vallow Daybell was convicted of killing two of her kids, and her only surviving child, Colby Ryan, says his siblings' murders "changed the way I view people."
Lori Vallow Daybell was convicted of killing two of her children, and her sole living child is speaking out about the cold-blooded destruction of his family.
Colby Ryan shares his thoughts about the mother who was once the center of his world and the murders that shocked a nation in an all-new Dateline titled “Lori Vallow Daybell: The Jailhouse Interview," airing Friday, March 7 at 9/8c p.m. on NBC.
Lori and her now-husband, Chad Daybell, were each convicted at separate trials of killing Lori's kids — Tylee Ryan, 16, and Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7 — as well as other horrific crimes.
How did Lori Vallow Daybell's crimes affect her son Colby Ryan?
According to Colby, the brutal murders of his younger siblings, Tylee and JJ, completely transformed the way he views the world.
“I guess I always was like a very positive, see the best in people, kind of person,” Colby told Dateline correspondent Keith Morrison in the new episode. “And then, I watched someone that I knew my entire life do what she did. And it just changed the way I view people.”
As Lori's oldest child, Colby was no longer living at home when Tylee and JJ disappeared in September of 2019, last seen alive on different dates that month.
Investigators launched a nationwide search to find the missing children later that year, as Lori refused to reveal their whereabouts, opting instead to enjoy the sunny beaches on Kauai, Hawaii, with her new husband, Chad.
The mystery of what happened to the missing siblings was finally solved in June of 2020 when their remains were discovered buried on Chad’s rural property in Rexburg, Idaho.
While JJ was found wearing the red pajamas he was last seen alive in and had duct tape and a plastic bag over his head, Tylee’s remains had been dismembered and were burned beyond recognition, Dateline previously reported.
What did Colby Ryan say about what happened to his sister, Tylee?
“The way that my sister was treated was with hate. That's not even human to do what they did to her [body], after,” Colby told Morrison of the grisly discovery.
Lori Vallow Daybell speaks out from prison
Morrison also interviewed Lori for Friday's episode, in what Dateline is calling "her first TV interview." From behind bars, the convicted killer proclaimed her innocence and insisted to Morrison that she and her husband Chad will be exonerated for the crimes.
“I have seen things in the future that Jesus showed me when I was in heaven,” she said, as seen in a preview of the episode. “And we were not in jail and we were not in prison and they were still in the future, from now.”
Morrison described the conversation to NBC Insider as one of the “wackiest interviews” he’s ever done.
“Lori Vallow Daybell: The Jailhouse Interview,” which marks Dateline’s seventh broadcast on the family crimes, will also include interviews with retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent Doug Hart; Madison County Sheriff Ron Ball, who was the former lead detective for the Rexburg Police Department; and Detective Ray Hermosilla, a co-lead for the Rexburg Police Department.
To find out more about what Colby and Lori will reveal about the shocking case and murders, watch Dateline on Friday, March 7 at 9/8c p.m. on NBC or stream the episode on Peacock after it becomes available the next day.
And for even more Dateline, sign up for the show's official newsletter and check out its podcast.
