Summary of tweets for Thursday, May 4th - Day 17
State witness:
Gilbert Police Officer Ryan Pillar.
Nate Eaton
@NateNewsNow
·
8h
The next witness is Officer Ryan Pillar. He has been a police officer with the Gilbert Police Department in Feb. 2007. Thomas objects to having Pillar on the stand based on Idaho Rule 404b. Boyce overrules the objection.
Pillar explains his professional background. In 2016, he moved to the special victims unit. In 2019, he moved to the bio-crimes unit where he was responsible for investigating violent crimes like robberies and homicide. In 2021, Pillar moved back to the patrol.
Pillar recalls that on Oct. 2, 2019, he was in a meeting with other detectives when they learned of a shooting. Pillar and his unit went out to the scene. Police had put up yellow tape. There was a black Tesla registered to Brandon Boudreaux. Brandon was at the scene.
Pillar was assigned to the primary investigator.
Pillar interviewed Brandon. Brandon said he left his home with four kids that morning. He dropped three off at home and took the last child to Melani's house. Brandon then went to the gym with his friends.
"After he returned home, he was shot at and then we conducted a canvas of the area. We spoke with neighbors, collected Ring footage and ultimately confirmed that there was a Jeep that was idling in front of Mr. Boudreax's residence for approximately 1.5 hours."
The wheel that was normally attached to the back of a Jeep Wrangler was gone, according to witnesses. The back window cannot open all the way if the wheel is gone, Pillar says. Ring footage and witnesses reported a gunshot at 9:14 a.m.
A bullethole was found in the front driver's side door of the Tesla. Some of the projective fragments were recovered.
There were shards of glass in the road where Brandon was shot at, Pillar says. There was no evidence that Brandon had any enemies but Pillar learned Brandon was going through a divorce with his wife Melani.
Pillar also learned that Melani's aunt Lori Vallow and her brother Alex Cox were involved in a shooting that previous July (the shooting of Charles Vallow).
Pillar spoke with Chandler Police, the agency investigating Charles Vallow's shooting. They learned a gray Jeep was at the scene of that shooting.
Pillar checked a license plate reader system on the Jeep. It captured the Jeep traveling southbound on I-15 in Idaho Falls on Oct. 1, then it was captured in Arizona and then again back in Idaho Falls on Oct. 3.
"The license plate reader runs specifically off the license plate number itself," Pillar says.
After receiving the license plate reader information, Pillar reached out to the Fremont County Sheriff's Office and the Rexburg Police Department. Pillar became aware of Tammy Daybell's death and police assumed the Jeep was in Fremont County/Rexburg.
Pillar spoke with the coroner in Fremont County to find out how death investigations work in the county - particularly Tammy Daybell's death. Pillar wanted to find the Jeep and the suspect - Alex Cox.
Pillar completed cell tower/cell phone search warrants and one of the phones Alex was using was parked near Brandon's residence during the time of the shooting and then left the area shortly thereafter for Idaho.
After talking with Chandler Police about their homicide and the attempted homicide in Gilbert, the FBI was contacted. The focus then turned to finding JJ and Tylee.
Pillar describes how Rexburg police went to the apartment complex to try and find JJ and Tylee. "They were successful in contacting Alex, Chad and Lori but were unsuccessful in locating the children," Pillar says.
Pillar shares how police were told that JJ was with Melanie Gibb in Gilbert. Pillar and his detective partner went to two homes where Melanie Gibb lived. She was not at either location. Pillar tried to call Gibb.
She didn't answer but she called him back and said she was not in Arizona. Pillar set up pole cameras at Gibb's house that record all activity.
In November and December 2019, none of the law enforcement agencies were able to find any evidence of the kids. They spoke with Colby Ryan and he didn't know where the kids were.
The shooting into Brandon Boudreaux continued. The rest of his vehicle was processed for evidence. Pillar and a few other detectives flew to Rexburg to process the Jeep after it had been seized.
Photos, biological evidence and gunshot residue evidence was collected. The gunshot residue was collected at the back of the Jeep.
Pillar needs to refer to his notes after Smith asks him about a particular date. Defense attorneys reviewing the notes.
On Nov. 26, police conducted a welfare check on the children in Rexburg. That night Melanie Gibb called Pillar. On Nov. 27, police conducted an extensive search of the properties where Melani, Alex and Lori were living.
Pillar received data on Tylee Ryan's phone. It was used in Arizona and Idaho but in December, it showed up in Hawaii. It also popped up in Missouri for a brief time.
Pillar says Brandon and Melani had a life insurance policy that each of them would need to sign in order to cancel the policy.
The policy was still active at the time of the shooting and if Brandon had died, Melani would have received over $200,000. Melani also received a payout from the divorce proceedings.
Pillar says there were several Venmo exchanges made between Lori, Chad, Alex and Melani. There wre also text messages talking about cash exchanges.
Smith has no further questions. Thomas says all of the testimony today should be exempt because of Idaho rule 404b. He has no questions.
The defense objected to having Pillar say how much money Melani received after the divorce settlement. Boyce sustained the objection. I've learned Melani received $300,000.
Pillar is dismissed from the stand. The state has no further witnesses today. The witness tomorrow morning will be lengthy, Smith says. Jurors will be excused for the day. We will have a 15-minute break and then an evidentiary hearing will be held outside the presence of the jury
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