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Brother of Naomi Irion rages at suspect after her body was discovered buried in rural Nevada

Brother of Naomi Irion rages at suspect after her body was discovered buried in rural Nevada 2

The grieving brother of an abducted teenager has taken to social media to call for justice after her death.

Casey Valley, who organized and led search efforts for his younger sister, Naomi Irion, 18, said on Wednesday night he was struggling to comprehend the news of her passing just hours after authorities reported they found her body in a gravesite.

‘I can’t believe it,’ he wrote on Facebook. ‘I’m at a loss for words.’

He thanked everyone for their support in trying to locate Irion, and said: ‘Now comes a different kind of effort. Naomi was taken away from us far too soon. #JusticeforNaomi.’

Irion was kidnapped from a Walmart in Fernley, Nevada, on March 12, when surveillance footage showed a man waiting in the parking lot for her. 

Hundreds of volunteers had joined in searches across the vast desert area around Fernley over the past two weeks looking for Irion, with groups forming online to share any clues about her disappearance, until the Churchill County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Wednesday night that they had positively identified her body.

Nobody has been charged in her death yet, but 41-year-old Troy Driver could face life in prison without parole for her alleged kidnapping. He has been charged with first-degree kidnapping.

The body of Naomi Irion, 18, pictured, was found at a gravesite on Tuesday - 17 days after she disappeared

The body of Naomi Irion, 18, pictured, was found at a gravesite on Tuesday – 17 days after she disappeared

Following the news, her brother, Casey Valley, second from left, wrote on Facebook that he was having trouble processing it

Following the news, her brother, Casey Valley, second from left, wrote on Facebook that he was having trouble processing it

Valley, left, had organized search efforts across rural Nevada for Irion after she disappeared

Valley, left, had organized search efforts across rural Nevada for Irion after she disappeared

In a Facebook post Wednesday night, Valley called for justice in Irion's murder

In a Facebook post Wednesday night, Valley called for justice in Irion’s murder

Irion, the daughter of a U.S. State Department staffer, was last seen around 5:25 a.m. on March 12 in her car in a Walmart parking lot in Fernley, about 30 miles east of Reno. 

In a criminal complaint filed Wednesday morning, prosecutors alleged Driver – who was apprehended last Friday in connection to her disappearance – ‘did abduct Naomi Irion and did hold or detain her for the purpose of committing sexual assault and/or for the purpose of killing her.’

He made his initial court appearance Wednesday, via video conference from Lyon County Jail, before Canal Township Justice Court Judge Lori Matheus ruled that his bail will remain at $750,000.

If Driver is able to post bail, he will be required to wear a GPS monitor as a condition of his release. He also must stay away from Fernley, Nevada, where Irion’s kidnapping took place. 

Driver is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on April 12 to determine whether there is enough evidence for him to be tried in state court. 

DailyMail.com reached out to his attorney, Mario Walther, for comment. 

Valley, meanwhile, said after the hearing that the family was ‘all in shock’ that any bail had been set. 

Troy Driver, 41, was officially charged with Irion's kidnapping on Wednesday

Troy Driver, 41, was officially charged with Irion’s kidnapping on Wednesday

Judge Lori Matheus ordered he remain held on a $750,000 bail

Judge Lori Matheus ordered he remain held on a $750,000 bail

Surveillance footage from the morning of Irion’s disappearance showed her sitting in the driver’s seat while she waited for a company shuttle to take her to her job at Panasonic. 

A man wearing a hoodie – believed to be Driver – was filmed approaching her vehicle after circling the area. 

It’s unclear if she was in the store at the time he broke into the vehicle or if she was in the car, but footage shows the pair driving off with the suspect in the driver’s seat. 

The pair then drove out of the lot with the man behind the wheel. Her abandoned car was found on March 15 near a paint manufacturing facility in an industrial park along Interstate 80 less than a mile away from the Walmart store.  

Valley said earlier his sister usually catches a bus from the Walmart lot to work at a Reno-area Panasonic facility. He contacted family members and authorities after she failed to arrive at work and didn’t return home that weekend. 

Irion’s family claimed the teen went on a date with an unknown man the day before she vanished and had complained about being sexually harassed at work.  

Panasonic knew about the harassment and had handled it ‘internally,’ according to her brother.   

Before authorities announced that her body had been identified, Valley told reporters Wednesday that the family appreciated the support from the community and praised efforts by sheriff’s deputies and federal agents to find his sister.

‘Lyon County and the FBI are working very hard,’ he said. ‘I wish there was more and everybody does.’ 

Irion was seen in surveillance footage buying snacks at a gas station convenience store on her way to a her factory job before she disappeared on March 12

Irion was seen in surveillance footage buying snacks at a gas station convenience store on her way to a her factory job before she disappeared on March 12

Surveillance footage also showed a hooded suspect apparently waiting outside of the Walmart parking lot in Fernley, Nevada for Irion that morning

He was seen pacing the parking lot before getting into Irion's car and driving the two of them away

Surveillance footage also showed a hooded suspect apparently waiting outside of the Walmart parking lot in Fernley, Nevada for Irion that morning

Brother of Naomi Irion rages at suspect after her body was discovered buried in rural Nevada 3

But following the court hearing Wednesday night, investigators with the Churchill County and Lyon County sheriff’s departments announced they had found Irion’s body at a gravesite in an undisclosed area of Churchill County.

They said they found the body Tuesday night at around 9pm after receiving a tip that led them to the rugged mountains located about 150 miles from where she was abducted in Fernley.

‘No further information can be released at this time as this is still an open and active investigation,’ the sheriff’s office said Wednesday after officials announced Irion had been found. 

Her body was transported to the Washoe County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy, which confirmed identification. 

‘We would like to extend our sympathy and condolences to the Irion family and thank all the volunteers for their hard work in trying to find Naomi and bring closure to the family,’ the law enforcement offices wrote in a press release. 

They did not provide any additional information about her apparent murder, citing an ongoing investigation.

Soon, Facebook posts poured in from residents throughout rural Nevada who wished to share their condolences with the family.

On one page dedicated to finding her, creator Rocky Pastorino said he is ‘extremely proud of how our community came together to find a person we all fell in love with without knowing Naomi.’

But, he added: ‘My heart breaks for the Irion family and I personally know exactly how they feel.

‘We lost a great woman to a senseless act, and may Naomi Christine Irion rest in peace.’

Another woman, Naomi Owaseye also posted: ‘I’m very sorry things ended this way and I’m sending my deepest condolence to her family.

‘She might be gone physically, but her memories will continue to live with the people she knew, and the people who have come to know her.’

 Alecia Douthit also wrote that Irion’s family had been on her mind, noting: ‘I didn’t know you or your family, but you’ve touched so many hearts and you will never be forgotten.

‘You deserved so much better, and I’m so sorry you had to see the ugliest parts of our world.’ 

Brother of Naomi Irion rages at suspect after her body was discovered buried in rural Nevada 5

 

Brother of Naomi Irion rages at suspect after her body was discovered buried in rural Nevada 7

 

Following the news of her death, local residents shared their sympathies on Facebook pages dedicated to finding her

Following the news of her death, local residents shared their sympathies on Facebook pages dedicated to finding her 

 Irion’s family has previously told DailyMail.com that the 18-year-old was exploring life as a free, young American woman after growing up in sheltered communities in Russia, Germany and South Africa – a result of her father’s job with the State Department.

She moved to America last year to live with Valley, an Apple employee who served in the Navy as a nuclear machinist from 2009 to 2016. She wanted to learn how to drive, get a job, go on dates and attend community college. 

Fernley, where she was living with her brother, is a safe area where the residents are stunned by what has happened. 

‘She really wanted to experience life in America being an American kid. Most kids get to learn how to drive a car and go on dates and get some freedom but in the diplomatic community overseas, you can’t have that. You can’t learn how to drive a car. You can’t really go on dates safely.

‘You have to be secure and there’s a lot of security that keeps us safe. She hadn’t experienced life without that yet.

‘She really wanted to explore herself as a free American young woman and what that looked like for her.’

‘She was so excited to move back to America,’ her mother, Diana, told DailyMail.com on Tuesday after flying in to Nevada from South Africa, where she still lives with her husband, Herve Irion, and their three Ukrainian-born adopted sons.

Until this year, Irion had never driven nor gone on dates freely. She was meeting people ‘online’ and at work, just like other teenagers and adults, her family said.

She was excited about having a car, a job in the Panasonic factory in Reno, where she was making friends.  

Her plan was to use her brother’s safe home as a launchpad for her own life, saving up enough money from her job at Panasonic to afford her own place, and enrolling in community college. 

Irion's family had told DailyMail.com that the 18-year-old was exploring life as a free, young American woman after growing up in sheltered communities

Irion’s family had told DailyMail.com that the 18-year-old was exploring life as a free, young American woman after growing up in sheltered communities

Driver, meanwhile, is a convicted felon who previously served 12 years in California state prison for  his role in a methamphetamine dealer's murder

Driver, meanwhile, is a convicted felon who previously served 12 years in California state prison for  his role in a methamphetamine dealer’s murder

Driver, meanwhile, is a convicted felon who previously served 12 years in California state prison for his role in a methamphetamine dealer’s murder.

Criminal records show he was convicted in 1997 of accessory to a murder after the fact in relation to the killing of 19-year-old Paul Steven Rodriguez. 

The Ukiah Daily Journal reported that in April of that year, Rodriguez, who was a methamphetamine dealer from Willits, California, was shot in the head by his 17-year-old girlfriend, Alissa Marie Moore.

Driver, who was 17 years old at the time, and 19-year-old Carl Herbert Dulinksy helped Moore dispose of Rodriguez’ body and hide his torched car in a nearby forest.

The trio of suspects were arrested after the victim’s remains were discovered two weeks after the killing.

Four months later, Driver pleaded guilty to the accessory charge related to the murder. He also admitted to robbing a convenience store and a service station, and to breaking into a hardware store.

Driver was sentenced to 15 years in state prison but was released after 12 years. 

His rap sheet in California also includes convictions on charges of second-degree robbery and burglary. 

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