‘Doomsday’ triple-murder case: Chad Daybell saw kids as 'zombies', wanted sex, money & power, says prosecutor

The opening statements started in a triple-murder trial of a man who faces the allegation of killing his wife and his then-girlfriend Lori Vallow Daybell's two stepchildrenon Wednesday (April 10).

These “doomsday” slayings, as per the prosecutors were fuelled by the accused Chad Daybell's desire for “power, sex and money.”

In their opening remarks, the prosecutors said Daybell has a "desire for sex, money and power". Chad and Lori met at a religious gathering in 2018 and had an affair. Soon, the two couldn't stand other people in each other's lives -Chad's wife Tammy and Lori's kids"JJ" Vallow and Tylee Ryan. They saw them as obstacles to their relationship and referred to them as"dark spirits" and "zombies".

Add WION as a Preferred Source

The prosecutor made the remark during the opening statements made in the triple-murder trial held on Wednesday (April 10).

The police have charged Daybel and his current wife Lori Vallow in connection with the killing of the man's former wife Tammy Daybell and her children Joshua "JJ" Vallow and Tylee Ryan.

Also Read:Missouri executes murder convict Brian Dorsey despite mercy bid by prison officials

"You’ll hear in the world Chad and Lori planned for themselves, they identified those who stood in the way of their dream as dark,'' argued Madison County Prosecutor Rob Wood.

"Their spouses, Lori’s children and anyone who opposed them were labelled sometimes as dark spirits or even zombies. The evidence will show that it was a convenient narrative that dehumanized people who stood in their way," he added.

Wood further said that Chad Daybell even talked about how the children were "possessed". He even"predicted"that his wife Tammy Daybell would die soon.

Meanwhile, Daybell’s attorney John Prior appealed to the jury to look into the facts of the case.

"Don’t be distracted by speculation. Don’t be distracted by guesses or assumptions or hunches. It all comes down to facts and evidence," Prior said, in his opening statement.

How did the case unfold and the killings come to light?

In June 2020, Daybell was arrested after the remains of Joshua and Tylee were found by the police on his property in Fremont County, Idaho. The court is likely to continue the trial for the last 10 weeks.

As per the authorities, the stepchildren's remains were hidden by Daybell between September 2019 and June 2020.

In November 2019, a formal search of the two kids started after family members reached out to the authorities since they had not seen or spoken to the kids, said the Rexburg Police Department.

Watch:Indian family of four found dead in murder-suicide case in U.S, police finds bodies during check

According to the court documents, the remains of Joshua were buried in a pet cemetery and the accused had dismembered and burned Tylee in a fire pit.

Speaking about finding Joshua's remains under a tree, Rexburg Police Detective Ray Hermosillo said, "There were taller shrubs. In the middle of the six-by-six section, it looked like there was just a little bit of grass. ... The ERT team began excavating that site. They removed the top layer of soil ... at that point, you could see what appeared to be three large white rocks."

"As soon as they did that you could start to smell the odour, through my training experiences a decomposing body," he added.

Hermosillo added that after digging a bit further, the officials discovered a "small body wrapped in black plastic with duct tape around it."

(With inputs from agencies)