Irion family wants to shed light on missing person cases

LYON COUNTY, Nev. (KOLO) - The Irion family has gone through the unimaginable. An abduction and now the death of their daughter and sister.

Eighteen-year-old Naomi Irion was found dead on Tuesday, March 29, 2022. When her family was given the news a woman’s body had been found in a remote part of Churchill County, they then had to sit in court on that same day and see for the first time, the man accused of her kidnapping and now her murder.

“To stand up there and say that the suspect’s safety was important to our family, it was the most difficult thing I have ever done, and I didn’t want anyone to shoulder that responsibility,” says Casey Valley, Naomi’s brother.

The family says they know they are headed in yet another direction in this tragedy. The investigation is ongoing, but now, the Lyon County District Attorney’s Office must now put together its case.

“The detectives told us we cannot endanger the case against this person,” says Diana Irion, Naomi’s mother. “We cannot let out a hint in court. You have to act like you don’t know anything. And it is so important that we get justice for Naomi,” she says.

Act they did in court earlier this week. Never letting on they knew a body, perhaps Naomi’s, had been found.

Casey has been the family contact for both law enforcement and the media. And there is a reason for that.

“Like I’ve said before, I feel so responsible for this, since Naomi was living with me,” says Casey. “And I’m her big brother and I’m supposed to protect her,” he says.

Valley says the family’s next step is to help other families who have gone through this or be there for family members should it happen to them. He is pushing #trustthefamily to promote conversations concerning missing persons and the response.

In the meantime, he says he will gear up to testify in court about Naomi’s disappearance to make sure, he says, justice is served.

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