The brother of Lori Vallow, the Idaho mother jailed in connection to the disappearance of her two missing children, died of natural causes, a medical examiner said.
Alex Cox died in December from a pulmonary embolism, a condition that causes one or more arteries in the lungs to become blocked by a blood clot, according to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Office in Arizona.
An attorney for Vallow's niece, Melani Boudreaux Pawlowski, said in a press release that the medical examiner's report proves that Cox's death "had no sinister aspect."
"With a degree of vindication, the family hopes that the confirmation of this truth will help all to step back, take a breath, and allow the truth to unfold through the process," attorney Robert P. Jarvis said.
Ever since Idaho police began investigating the disappearance of Vallow's son, Joshua Vallow, 7, and her daughter, Tylee Ryan, 17, mysterious deaths have surfaced.
Cox shot and killed Vallow's former husband, Charles Vallow, in July 2019 following a confrontation. Lori Vallow and her brother were questioned over his death but not charged. Authorities in Arizona have said they are investigating Charles Vallow's death.
"Rampant rumors of evil plots and conspiracy robbed the family of their time to grieve the loss of their husband, son, brother, and uncle," Jarvis said about Cox's death. "Even so, the family finds comfort in the medical examiner’s finding that Alex Cox died of natural causes."
Lori Vallow and her current husband, Chad Daybell, are being investigated for murder, attempted murder and conspiracy in the death of his former wife, Tammy Daybell.
Tammy Daybell was found dead in her home in October. The death was initially ruled as natural but has since been classified as suspicious. In December, the 49-year-old's remains were exhumed so an autopsy could be conducted, the results of which are still pending, NBC affiliate KTVB in Boise reported in April.
Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow married weeks after Tammy Daybell's death. They have not been charged in the case.
The Rexburg Police Department in Idaho has said that it believes the disappearance of Joshua and Tylee, who were last seen in September, could be tied to the death investigation of Tammy Daybell.
Pawlowski's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux, once said she knew the whereabouts of Joshua and Tylee but Jarvis denied that claim.
Lori Vallow is currently in jail in Idaho in connection to the disappearance of her children and is being held on a $1 million bond.
According to The Associated Press, she has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Chad Daybell, a self-published author who has written more than two dozen books about near-death and doomsday events, has not been charged in connection Joshua and Tylee's disappearance.
