In 2021, Michael Vaughan was five-years-old & lived up to his nickname “Monkey.” He was extremely energetic & playful & grew up in Fruitland, Idaho. His mom Brandi Neal described him as “all boy” & he loved to play with race cars. Fruitland is a small, safe town about an hour from Boise & on the border of Oregon. At the time of this story, the town had a population of 6,454. Fruitland is a rural area that sits along the Snake & Payette rivers in Payette County & it was named after the apple orchards that surround the area.
Michael lived in a quiet neighborhood on Southwest 9th Street with his family; the road they lived on was a relatively short dead-end road with mostly ranch-style homes with smaller lots & open areas. Many of the houses have privacy fences though there aren’t many trees or other obstructions.
It was a hot summer day on Tuesday, July 27, 2021 & Brandi had been working a stretch of days in a row & it was her last day before a break.She remembers that earlier that day when she got ready to leave, Michael didn’t want her to go to work. She assured him that when she got home, she would have a few days off & they could play together. Brandi called home around 4 pm, Michael was playing a game on his Nintendo & everything was normal. About 6:40 pm, Michael’s dad, Tyler Vaughan, headed to his 2-year-old daughter’s room to check on her & order a pizza & when he returned 15-20 minutes later, Michael was nowhere to be found. Tyler began frantically searching for Michael & also called Brandi at work to let her know what was happening. She sped home & when she arrived, she was met with police cars & neighbors standing outside their houses. After being unable to locate Michael in the house or around the outside of the property, Tyler called the Fruitland Police at 7:21 pm to report him missing.
Police narrowed down the time-frame that Michael went missing to between 6:40-7 pm. Authorities quickly responded but were unable to place an Amber Alert as the state of Idaho, like most states, requires evidence of an abduction. The lead detective in the case fought for an Amber Alert, but at that point, the theory was that Michael had just wandered off & this does not meet the criteria for the alert. Two hours after Michael walked out of his house, at 8:30 pm, a ‘missing & endangered’ alert was placed which notified citizens from Payette, Fruitland & New Plymouth. Michael had been seen walking east in the area of Southwest 9th Street.
Brandi remembers the whole situation as a blur, speeding back & forth down the neighborhood streets, asking neighbors if they’d seen Michael while Tyler stayed back to speak with law enforcement.
After speaking with neighbors, Brandi & Tyler discovered that Michael left the house & was on the hunt to find a friend to play with. He went to three of the neighbors’ homes to ask if their children could come out to play but found no one. They assumed Michael must have slipped out the side garage door that leads to the front yard because had he gone out the front door, Tyler would have likely heard it since the door makes a lot of noise. Brandi indicated that Michael was a friendly & curious boy though he rarely ever wandered off outside by himself. When he was outside in the front yard, he was accompanied by a parent or older sibling. In the few times he had wandered off, it was never farther than to the end of their street. It was Brandi’s belief that Michael was abducted.
A search began immediately & ultimately over a dozen agencies would become involved, including the Fruitland Police Department, the FBI & state police as well as other neighboring departments. The Idaho Mountain Search & Rescue team brought in their trained canines to assist & drones were utilized, searching more than 4,000 acres in total. Neighbors immediately jumped in to assist with the search, lining the streets as the police combed through the farm fields that bordered their home. According to Brandi, K-9 dogs were able to track Michael’s scent to the end of their street, away from the farm field to the right of the house & then it stopped abruptly.
The Snake River, nearby canals & septic tanks were also searched. It was commented that if the Snake River could have been dammed, it would have been. No evidence whatsoever was discovered so the police began to believe that abduction was likely.They partnered with the Homeward Bound program where semi-trucks traveling across the country would display photos of Michael. At the time of his disappearance, Michael was wearing a blue Minecraft t-shirt, dark blue boxer shorts & blue flip flops; he has blond hair & blue eyes. He was 3’7”, weighing about 50# when he went missing.
Brandi was insistent with the idea that no one that they knew could have been responsible. Police found Brandi & the family to be extremely distraught as would be expected & described them as engaged & cooperative from the very beginning. As the search went on, police were fielding hundreds of tips & the Chief of Police, JD Huff, indicated that each & every tip was followed up on. Most turned up with nothing while others were inconclusive. Surveillance footage from area homes were reviewed from home security, doorbell cameras or anything else possible.
When reviewing footage from the 6:30 pm time-frame that Michael would have gone missing, things seemed normal though police did notice a few things. At 6:47 pm, a white Honda Pilot drove down the street & on further investigation, police were able to deduce that no one from the area drove this type of car & police were unable to identify who the car belonged to. This information was announced by the Fruitland Police Department in October 2021. Police believe it is a 2016-2017 model & was seen on footage leaving the area of Southwest 8th Street around 6:47 pm. Police wanted to speak with the owner, hoping they could have seen something though the driver was never located.
They also saw a Dodge Avenger as well as a jogger around this time & they were identified & investigated. Police stressed that the Pilot wasn’t a suspect, just a potential witness with information they might not realize that could assist in finding Michael.
Police also saw a man walking through the splash pad area of Crestview Park leading up to the time of Michael’s disappearance. He is described as a white male adult in his late 20s to early 30s. At the time, he was wearing a white t-shirt with the arms cut off, black shorts, dark shoes & a dark hat. Just like the person in the Pilot, this man is not considered a suspect, but someone the police would like to speak with for potential evidence.
On November 19, police held a press conference & indicated that there was an increased probability that Michael had been abducted since their ground searches made no headway. A retired FBI agent, Jennifer Coffindaffer spoke to the media & said she believes MIchael is a very small percentage of kids who are subject to stranger abduction which according to her is 4%. Of those, 60-62% occur right in the vicinity of the home.
Brandi spoke with the Idaho Press in December, five months after Michael disappeared & indicated that her 2-year-old daughter only just started playing with toys again since her brother disappeared. Brandi indicated that she rarely ever leaves her house anymore & at the time of the interview, it was a Thursday & she had only managed to work one day that week. She said that anytime she sees police dogs searching the area, she becomes emotional. Her oldest daughter didn’t want to celebrate her birthday that year. She feels the Fruitland Police have become like family; they helped rake leaves so her younger daughter could jump into them & text her older daughter to wish her a happy birthday.
A year into the search for Michael, there was still no sign of him. By this point, police had followed-up on more than 1,000 leads. Each lead was thoroughly reviewed & cleared & the process was very exhaustive & time intensive, but investigators held out hope that someone would end up providing information that would solve this case. A reward for information that aided in Michael’s safe return had been increased to $52,992.
On June 24, 2022, Michael’s sixth birthday arrived & family set blue balloons into the sky to celebrate him. Brandi chose blue for his favorite color & biodegradable balloons because he loved the environment. Brandi said, “Today is about his beautiful face & his life that was brought here to us & everyone here six years ago.” She indicated that they know he’s out there somewhere & they refuse to stop searching for him. Michael’s father, Tyler Vaughan said, “He’s beyond missed & beyond loved & we need him. We need him.”
On November 12, 2022, 35-year-old Sarah Wondra was arrested & charged with felony failure to report a death. Investigators received a very credible tip & believe that she has knowledge of Micheal’s death & failed to report it. The information reportedly came from Stacey Wondra, her husband, who spoke with police though it’s unclear when or why they spoke with him. When police arrived, Sarah was home & told an officer that God told her Stacey killed Michael & buried him in a neighbor’s yard. She later backtracked & said that Stacey hadn’t hurt Michael but buried him in their own backyard.
They also believe that she isn’t the only person involved & worked to find those who could be connected. Police were given information that Michael’s remains might be found behind the Wondra’s house. The Wondras live in the house but do not own it & have no connection to Michael or his family. It sits four minutes from where Michael lived, the neighborhood is diagonal from his home across a farm field. A search warrant was obtained & on initial search, nothing was found but excavation crews were sent to the location & began digging up the yard with the help of cadaver dogs. It was investigators intent to dig three to four feet deep, not stopping until the entire backyard is excavated.
After her arrest, a YouTuber pointed out that Sarah had made a TikTok video of herself in her kitchen & behind her, Michael’s missing person’s flier could be seen attached to her refrigerator. When she appeared in court, the judge reminded her of her rights & she replied, “I don’t have any reason to be silent because I didn’t do anything wrong.” She told police that she had nothing to do with Michael’s death, saying she “definitely did not kill that boy” but, “God already told me who did it.” She said that she never murdered anyone though implicated her husband’s involvement in Michael’s death. She specifically told police that her husband allegedly buried his body by the shed. Her husband is in Washington State County Jail on unrelated charges of unlawful possession of a firearm. He was not allowed to have a firearm due to a previous firearms conviction in Montana on April 4, 2019.
The day before Michael vanished, Sarah’s husband Stacey took her to the ER & wrote on his Facebook page, “I’m feeling really worried about my wife Sarah Anne Wondra. She’s not feeling good at all. She’s having a lot of pain in her side of her stomach. Please be praying for my baby that she feels much better. I love you baby. Feel better – feeling worried. On August 2, 2021 she shared a missing person flier on her Facebook page & wrote, “Boy missing from around my neighborhood, please help find him!!!
When police searched the yard, K-9 dogs were alerted & further investigation found some anomalies that made them realize that the body had been buried there but has since moved. More evidence has been found within the house but these details haven’t been released to the public. After excavating the backyard, police then moved onto a new location. Despite the fact that Michael’s remains weren’t recovered, police believe that he was abducted & is now deceased.
Two additional men were living with the Wondras at the time of Michael’s abduction & are also suspected of having knowledge of his abduction; 30-year-old Brandon Shurtliff & 32-year-old Adrien Lucienne. Brandon was believed to be in North Dakota & Adrien either in Toledo, Ohio or California at the time of Sarah’s arrest. Sarah told police that Adrian had been the one to kill Michael & was scared to tell anyone. Police indicated that they made contact with these two men but haven’t reported what, if anything came from that contact.
On January 26, 2023, the Fruitland Police Department posted a Facebook update indicating that several pieces of evidence were found at the Wondra home on 1102 Redwing & some of those have been sent to a private DNA lab for further analysis. Fruitland’s police chief JD Huff believes there are still more people with knowledge of his abduction & that more charges are coming. In November of 2022, Wondra was found to be mentally incompetent & unfit & was sent to a state hospital pending continued evaluation of her competency to stand trial. This put the case on hold for four months. In March of 2023, she was then deemed fit to proceed in court.
One month later, in April of 2023, Payette County Prosecuting Attorney Michael Duke filed a motion to drop the charge against Wondra, stating that based on the evidence, the Idaho Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling in State v. Akins may be a defense in this case. The State v. Akins case involved a body wrapped in a tarp & a shower curtain & was found in a lake. A woman was charged for not reporting authorities of a death but the Idaho Supreme Court ruled that this charge would violate her Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.
The motion to dismiss doesn’t go into specifics about the evidence or other circumstances within the case. Brandi says she feels very disheartened & upset that these charges have been dropped though feels confident that police will still bring justice for Michael. She couldn’t comment why these charges were dropped but stated that charges are forthcoming for anyone who had any involvement in her son’s disappearance. Since the charges were dropped without prejudice, they can be refiled in the future. An attorney speaking about the case indicated that this can sometimes be necessary if the prosecution needs more time to build their case or adjust how they plan to approach the case.
Wondra remains in prison & still faces charges of aggravated assault, destruction of evidence & possession of a controlled substance in connection with an April 13, 2022 incident that has no relation to this case. She threatened to commit a violent injury when she pointed a gun at a person’s head at close range during or immediately after a verbal assault. She also tried to conceal the gun when investigated. A police report indicates that law enforcement responded to the home after multiple 911 calls were placed & Stacey Wondra reported that a man that had been staying at their house for the previous week had become belligerent & refused to leave. Sarah & Stacey said they had no guns in their house though police found a holster & a box that previously housed a rifle that was said to be sold the day before in New Plymouth.
According to the report, officers later discovered that Sarah had taken a purse with a handgun to her parent’s house & told them what happened. She admitted to hiding it & said she knows she wasn’t supposed to have firearms due to a past crime. In 2013 she was convicted of attempted robbery, a Class A Felony, in Multnomah County, Oregon. The purse allegedly contained four prescription pills which Sarah said was from an old prescription she had. She unlawfully obtained Vicodin in relation to the controlled substance charges. The recommended bond amount is $250,000 which was granted.
Michael’s disappearance prompted a new statewide notification for missing persons law called “Monkey’s Law” which establishes an emergency alert system that is parallel to the Amber Alert. Thisi July 27 marks two years that Michael went missing & his family gathered on June 24 for yet another birthday without him, his 7th birthday. Brandi finds that if she’s enjoying a moment with family or laughing over a joke, she gets very emotional & feels guilty for enjoying herself while Michael is still missing. Her daughter reminded her that it’s okay not to live in sadness all the time. Brandi is trying to be more present while her desire to find Michael is just as strong. She continues to ask that Michael’s story be shared in the hopes of new information that can lead to finding him.
Anyone with any information is urged to call the Fruitland Police Department at 208-642-6006 & use extension 0.
References:
- Wikipedia: Fruitland, Idaho
- Missingkids.org: A year without Michael
- Idaho State Journal: Police provide one-year update on missing child Michael Vaughan
- People: Idaho woman made TikTok videos showing flyer for missing boy. Now she faces charges
- Idaho 6 news: Status conference reset, once again, for Fruitland woman charged in the disappearance of Michael Vaughan
- The US Sun: Manhunt Underway: Mystery deepens in disappearance of Michael Vaughan, 6, after cops reveal ‘body buried in backyard was dug up & moved’
- KTVB 7: Michael Vaughan search continues as crews excavate Fruitland backyard
- KTVB 7: ‘We love you Monkey’: Community honors missing Fruitland boy for his sixth birthday
- KTVB 7: Michael Vaughan’s mother says she still ‘confident’ in law enforcement after charges dropped
- Argus Observer: Prosecutor refiles old charges on Sarah Wondra
- Yahoo Finance: Idaho woman faced only charge for missing Fruitland boy. Why was it just dropped?
- Medium: The unsolved disappearance of Michael ‘Monkey’ Vaughan
- MSN: Remembering Monkey: Family gathers for Michael Vaughan’s birthday amidst ongoing investigation
- Idaho Press: Michael Vaughan’s mother pleads – don’t let his case go cold
- KTVB 7: Where is Michael Vaughan? Mother of missing Fruitland boy urges people to share his story
- Medium: The unsolved disappearance of Michael ‘Monkey’ Vaughan
