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The controversial disappearance of DeOrr Kunz Jr

DeOrr Jay Kunz Jr., Disappeared July 10, 2015, Timber Creek Campground, near Leadore, Idaho

Revised January 2024

Two-year-old Deorr Kunz Jr., from Idaho Falls, disappeared on July 10, 2015, while visiting Timber Creek Campground, 10 miles from Leadore (east of Challis), Idaho, with his parents, Jessica Mitchell and Vernal DeOrr Kunz Senior. The site was close to the Stone Reservoir, and a stream ran alongside.

DeOrr’s great-grandfather (Grandfather of Jessica), Robert Walton, and Isaac Reinwand, a friend of Walton’s, were also on the camping trip.

The group was on a family fishing trip when DeOrr disappeared around 2.40 pm. On that day, Mitchell and Vernal’s decision to take the camping and fishing trip was sudden and unexpected, according to other family members. It was to become a fateful decision to head out into the wilderness.

Jessica and Vernal believed their son’s great-grandfather, Robert Walton, was watching DeOrr Jr. at the Timber Creek Campground, while his great-grandfather thought the boy was down by the creek with his parents and Isaac. DeOrr was wearing a camouflage jacket and blue pants when he vanished.

The parents' separate 911 calls, police interviews, and other evidence triggered an investigation that left more questions than answers.

There has been no sign of DeOrr since that day, and nobody has been charged with his disappearance. Mitchell and Kunz Sr. were named suspects in January 2016 by former Lemhi County Sheriff Lynn Bowerman but were never arrested or charged. There was little or no evidence that they had committed any crime.

The parents have claimed from the beginning that they do not know what happened to their son. Reinwand and Walton also said they had no idea where the boy was when interviewed by the police. Walton died in June 2019.

After months of testing at the FBI office in Quantico, Virginia, investigators announced a bone found at the campsite in June 2019 was from an animal and not connected to the missing boy.

According to the current Lemhi County Sheriff, Steve Penner, the case is still open as of late 2023. Penner won the 2017 election that saw the previous sheriff, Lynn Bowerman, retire.

DeOrr’s Arrival at the Timber Creek campground

When the family arrived at the campsite, Mitchell, Vernal, and DeOrr Sr. put up chairs and lit a fire in the fire pit. Walton went to the trailer and relaxed inside, claiming to have left the door open.

Issac Reinwand said he left shortly after arriving to go fishing on the nearby stream, only to return after DeOrr Jr. was discovered missing.

When Jessica and Vernal completed their tasks, Mitchell alleges that she shouted to her grandfather that they were leaving DeOrr behind while they looked around the area. However, Walton maintained that he never heard Jessica’s call and was unaware that he was responsible for the boy. Thirty minutes later, the family discovered DeOrr was missing.

Lemhi County Sheriff Lynn Bowerman said Jessica and DeOrr Sr. walked down a creek near the campsite to fish with Reinwand. DeOrr Jr. followed the three individuals.

DeOrr Jr.'s parents asked the two-year-old if he wanted to stay with his grandfather or go fishing, at this point, he allegedly began walking back to be with Walton. This would be the last time he was seen alive.

Later, Walton said he saw his grandson near the creek, took his eyes off the boy for just a moment, and when he looked back, DeOrr Jr. was gone.

911 call Transcript by Jessica Mitchell

Jessica Mitchell called 911 at around 2.30 pm. DeOrr Sr. was also reporting the disappearance at the same time.

911 OPERATOR: What`s the address of your emergency?

MITCHELL: I`m actually camping in Leadore, just outside of Leadore. My 2-year-old son -- we can`t find him.

911 OPERATOR: How long has he been missing?

MITCHELL: About an hour.

911 OPERATOR: An hour?

MITCHELL: Yes.

911 OPERATOR: Are you by water?

MITCHELL: Yes.

911 OPERATOR: Do you know which campground you`re in?

MITCHELL: It`s Stone Reservoir, Timber Creek.

911 OPERATOR: Stone Reservoir?

MITCHELL: Yes, or Timber Creek.

911 OPERATOR: Hold on. We need search and rescue. Jessica? Jessica?

MITCHELL: Yes?

20:05:00]911 OPERATOR: What`s your son`s name?

MITCHELL: Deorr.

911 OPERATOR: OK. What was he wearing?

MITCHELL: He was wearing cowboy boots, a blue pair of, like, pajama pants, and a camo jacket. And he`s got shaggy blond hair.

911 OPERATOR: Is your husband calling, too?

MITCHELL: (INAUDIBLE) like, all down where we`re camping at, and we can`t find him at all.

911 OPERATOR: OK. We need you to stay within cell service. We have people going on the way.

MITCHELL: Thank you.

The Kunz Family

DeOrr Jay Kunz Jr. was born on December 30, 2012, to Jessica Mitchell and her fiancé, Vernal DeOrr Kunz Sr., in Idaho Falls, Idaho. To his family, he was known as ‘Little Man’.

The search for DeOrr

Multiple massive searches have been conducted through the mountain meadows, dense pine forests and waterways in the weeks and months since the boy disappeared. Search and rescue crews on foot, horseback, and ATVs have scoured the remote campground dozens of times. Searches have been performed from the air using helicopters and drones.

Advanced teams and K9 dogs were brought in to find any sign of DeOrr, and searchers focused on the Timber Creek and Stone Reservoir near the campsite where he was last seen.

Three private investigators have investigated the case, but no solid evidence on DeOrr’s whereabouts has been produced.

Sightings

The group traveled 40 minutes down the highway to the Stage Shop, a convenience store in Leadore, where the family claimed the store clerk witnessed Mitchell and Kunz Sr. with their son.

However, when questioned later, the clerk stated they saw a blond boy at 6:00 pm that night, not 1.00 pm, the time the parents had given to police in their reports. Vernal Kunz later stated the clerk was “mistaken”, a claim that has been questioned.

Controversy in the Kunz Case

Discrepancies quickly emerged in the accounts of the parents under which DeOrr disappeared. Inconsistencies in statements became public, and officials said both have failed multiple polygraph tests. As a result, both Mitchell and DeOrr Sr. were named suspects in the case in January 2016.

Lemhi County Sheriff Lynn Bowerman said, “I believe his parents are hiding something. There is no doubt in my mind. We gave them every opportunity to explain if it was an accident of some kind, and they haven’t.”

Bowerman believed the case “has to be a homicide” and did not believe the boy was anywhere near the area where he vanished.

Family members said the boy was said to be wearing cowboy boots a size too big for his feet, which allegedly kept slipping off. Many speculated that if DeOrr was attacked by an animal or snatched, the boots would have fallen off. But no trace of the boots has turned up.

However, minimal evidence has been found, and neither parent has confessed to the crime. As time passes, the family continues to distance themselves from the community they once regarded so highly, leaving everyone wondering, where is DeOrr Kunz Jr.?

Investigation by Klein

The family hired and fired a private investigation firm, Klein Investigations and Consulting. The head of the company, Philip Klein, reported that his investigators unearthed evidence to rule out an animal attack or kidnapping scenario. Klein said, “We have said one thing all along in this case - the evidence will lead us to the truth. And we want to assure you, the public, that we are getting there.” Klein also said a member of Deorr’s extended family rehired him to investigate the case, something the attorney for Mitchell and Deorr Sr. denies.

After he announced his opinion on the matter, Mitchell and Kunz fired him, eventually attempting to take him to court. Their lawsuits were dismissed at least three times, with KIC winning every one. The final lawsuit came in October of 2019.

These lawsuits stemmed from the allegations that Klein was negligent in his conversations with the media, including defamatory allegations against the parents that allegedly hindered the investigation.

Klein alleged the investigation was “a sickening example of ‘deflection’ of an event that, in our opinion, was probably an accident and coverup.” Further, he claims that the investigators have an idea of ‘how’ DeOrr died but cannot uncover ‘why’ his death occurred, believing the mother to be the source of the entire coverup. Although she admitted to the media that she thought Vernal could be capable of harming their child, Klein counters that she is just as capable of committing such a heinous crime.

Klein is the second investigator to be hired by the family and then quit; both continue to name the parents as the primary suspects. Klein believes explicitly the death of DeOrr Kunz was likely an accident and a cover-up.

Age progressed photo

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children released an age-progressed photo of DeOrr Kunz Jr in 2017.

The+National+Center+for+Missing+and+Exploited+Children+has...ogressed+photo+of+missing+Idaho+Falls+toddler+DeOrr+Kunz+Jr.

Aftermath of the DeOrr Kunz disappearance

Jessica Mitchell and Vernal Kunz broke off their engagement shortly after the disappearance of their son, each eventually remarrying and moving out of state.

Upon eviction from their shared apartment for failure to make payments, investigators were given access to the premises by the residing landlord, where they discovered the missing camouflage jacket and several toy cars that both parents alleged were with their son at the time of his disappearance. In addition to the toys and jacket, a family friend used a credit card with "seemingly purchases of items unknown to investigators in testimony." An insurance tracking device box, along with instructions, was also found.

Cadaver dogs hit five locations, including a site just 3/4 of a mile from the campground in 2016. There was no other evidence found at the location.

In April 2019, a new private investigator, David Marshburn, became involved in the search. He co-founded the Search For Me Foundation and has become part of the investigation.

In November 2019, HLN's Real Life Nightmare series reexamined the case and aired unseen footage, including hours of recorded interviews with family members and friends. Also in 2019, a film by David Paulides, Missing 411, featured the case and interviewed vital members in the investigation.

In March 2020, it was confirmed a small bone discovered at Timber Creek Campground did not belong to DeOrr. Sheriff Steve Penner found the bone in June 2019 and sent it to the FBI office in Quantico, Virginia, for testing. He said, “Preliminary testing couldn’t rule it out as being human, but tests at Quantico did not find any human DNA on the bone. It’s likely the remains are from an animal.”

Statement from Philip Klein, President of Klein Investigations and Consulting October 2019

“On Friday of this past week, we learned that Vernal Kunz had signed a full release of our company and Mr Klein regarding the lawsuit named Kunz v. Klein et al.

The lawsuit, which was won in court by our legal team three times, was discharged by the court as it found no wrongdoing by the team and Mr. Klein in general. Mr. Klein and Mr. Klein’s insurance company gave notice that they were filing court papers to recover the cost (s) to the insurance company and Mr. Klein. The amount, since the three filings, had topped just over $150,000.

During the time of the hearings, Mr. Kunz’s financial status was reviewed. It was determined that Mr. Kunz and his father’s estate was “uncollectable.” It was determined that it would take many years and much more attorney fees to collect from Mr. Kunz. Therefore, Mr. Klein, Mr. Klein’s insurance company and Mr. Klein’s company decided to end the litigation to collect.

Therefore, on Friday, Mr. Kunz signed his dismissal and full release of any claims towards the parties.

We have said since day one that this case was not only frivolous but a discovery hunt to prepare for criminal defense. We, the investigators in the case, stand next to our opinions and conclusions based upon our investigation and the law enforcement investigation that not only is Vernal Kunz a person of interest, but a suspect in the disappearance of DeOrr Kunz, Jr.

Also, we, the investigators in the case, stand next to our opinions and conclusions based upon our investigation and law enforcement investigation that not only is Jessica Mitchell–Anderson a person of interest but also a suspect in the disappearance of DeOrr Kunz, Jr.

Both parties, Mitchell and Kunz (and two representatives), have attempted to point to our firm as doing a poor investigation regarding their missing child. We want to remind the public that both parties have changed their stories and been named by law enforcement as not only a person of interest but a suspect in this case. They also have failed polygraph tests and sadly have lied to you, the public – that they were found “inconclusive”, which is not true.

As we now have left the case, all litigation is over, and KIC Texas has been found exonerated; we call upon both Kunz and Mitchell to end this fiasco and step up, man up, and tell the dedicated LE agents the truth. What we have seen by both parties in the media has been nothing but a sickening example of “deflection” of an event that, in our opinion, was most probably an accident and coverup.

Lastly, let us thank you the citizens of IDAHO, for your support during this matter. There is a small group of sad people that acted like lawyers, tried to put their spin on this case in both the media and in public, and tried to hurt our good name. I say to you that you are pathetic and owe this hard-working and dedicated team that works all over the United States an apology. We know we will not get it – but the spotlight of shame is now on you. As for the rest of the citizens – thank you for opening your hearts, minds, and honest intention (s).

We understand that the case is still fluid, we have opened our files (again) to the Federal Government, Lemhi, and Bonneville County Sheriffs Department. We have told all of the agencies that we are there for them and will always continue to be until this is over.

I, personally, would be remiss if I did not thank Hans Mitchell and Steven Hart, our legal team, for their great counsel and hard work. From minute one they saw this case for what it was. As well, the Judge in the case that read and understood the law to which anyone looking at this case can see right through the smoke screen which was attempted to be set up by Mitchell-Anderson, and Kunz.

And let’s all remember, there is a little boy that is missing. DeOrr Kunz, Jr., does not deserve this show his parents attempted to put up. He deserves to come home and a proper burial. God bless this young child.

Again, God Bless little DeOrr, law enforcement, and the citizens of Idaho. We hope and pray an end comes soon in this case.”

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