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The devastated brother of Naomi Irion is calling for “justice” after her body was discovered buried in a remote part of Nevada more than two weeks after she was abducted.
Casey Valley, who organized search efforts for his younger sister, said he was having difficulty processing the discovery of her body Tuesday at a gravesite in Churchill County. The remains were confirmed to be those of Naomi on Wednesday, sheriff officials said.
“I can’t believe this,” Valley wrote on Facebook late Wednesday. “I’m at a loss for words.”
Valley, who reported Naomi missing after she was abducted on March 12 and failed to show up to her job at a Reno-area Panasonic facility, also thanked the volunteers for their actions.
“Thanks to everyone for your support,” Valley wrote. “Now comes a different kind of effort. Naomi was taken away from us far too soon.”
Troy Driver, 41, of Fallon, is being held on $750,000 bail for allegedly kidnapping Irion as she waited for a shuttle to her job at a Walmart in Fernley, where she lived with Valley.
Authorities said Driver, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in a 1997 murder in California, was caught on surveillance footage at the Walmart parking lot before getting into Irion’s 1992 Mercury Sable and driving off. Her car was found three days later at a nearby industrial park, according to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office.
Driver appeared in court on Wednesday and a judge left his bail unchanged at $750,000. He has yet to enter a plea and was arraigned from jail via Zoom during a brief proceeding. Driver will have to wear a GPS monitoring device if he posts bond.
A two-page criminal complaint filed Wednesday alleges Driver abducted Irion on or about March 12 and “did hold or detain her for the purpose of committing sexual assault and/or purpose of killing her.”
The FBI had offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the discovery of Irion. Phone records indicate she was active on social media and received a Snapchat just minutes before she vanished.
Friends of Valley, meanwhile, shared their condolences while echoing his call for Driver to be held accountable in his sister’s slaying. Authorities have not said whether Driver, who has been charged with first-degree kidnapping, will be charged in Irion’s death.
“Sweet angel Naomi is in all our hearts, never to be forgotten,” one woman wrote. “It’s time for justice now.”
Driver, who faces up to life in prison if convicted, is due back in court on Tuesday. A call to his attorney, Mario Walther, was not immediately returned early Thursday.
“No further information can be released at this time as this is still an open and active investigation,” the Lyon and Churchill County sheriff’s offices said in a joint statement Wednesday.
With Post wires
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