Idaho police announced Monday the arrest of a woman in connection with the 2021 disappearance of Michael Joseph “Monkey” Vaughan, a Fruitland boy who disappeared weeks after his fifth birthday, and whose missing person flyer he had posted on his refrigerator in various TikTok videos.
Michael, now 6 years old, was last seen on July 27, 2021, according to Fruitland Police Chief JD Huff, who told local reporters Monday that officers had arrested Sarah Wondra.
Wondra faces a charge for failing to notify authorities of a death, court records show, but the judge temporarily sealed the probable cause affidavit to protect additional leads, and police hinted more arrests are likely.
In several TikTok videos, he speaks into his camera while standing in front of a missing person flyer for Michael, including one in which he mentions serving time in prison.
MICHAEL JOSEPH VAUGHAN SEARCHED: MOM, IDAHO POLICE OFFER UPDATE ON MISSING CHILD
The 35-year-old man lives on the property where investigators believe the boy’s remains may be buried. He is only a few minutes walk from his family’s house.
Police investigated more than 1,000 leads over the past 16 months before an informant led them to Wondra’s home, the chief said, where they have been searching since last week.
On Sunday, hours before the announcement of her arrest but days after her property was searched, YouTuber Jonathan Lee Riches posted a video showing snippets of Wondra talking behind the wheel.
“It’s very, very disturbing to see a missing person flyer in a potential suspect’s refrigerator,” he said.
The next day, Huff told reporters about the arrest while speaking outside his home.
Fruitland resident Sarah Wondra, left, has been accused of failing to report a death to authorities more than a year after the disappearance of Michael Vaughan.
(Sarah Wondra/Facebook, Fruitland Police)
“Our investigation determined that Sarah Wondra may have known of Michael’s death and failed to report it,” he said, according to KTVB. “We do not believe that she is the only person who has knowledge of this, and we will look for those people who could possibly be connected.”
Huff did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital. His office said he is expected to issue a statement in the near future, but could not provide specific details.
Michael Joseph Vaughan and his mother, Brandie Neal, left.
(Fruitland Police Department)
Earlier this year, prosecutors dismissed a series of felony charges against Wondra in connection with an unrelated firearms case that also involved her husband, Stacey Wondra.
Vaughan, who goes by his nickname “Mono,” went missing near his home in Fruitland, Idaho, on July 27.
(Fruitland Police Department)
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She is due back in court for a status conference on November 21. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for the following day.
Police and K-9 volunteers had searched hundreds of acres in the area without success before concentrating on Wondra’s home.
