FRUITLAND, IDAHO: Fruitland Police announced that a woman was arrested on Monday, November 14 in connection with the 2021 disappearance of young Michael Vaughan. Vaughan had vanished weeks before his fifth birthday and Sarah Wondra, 35, has now been taken into custody. She was charged with failing to report a murder and there is also proof that the woman made TikTok videos where the missing person flyers for Michael have been spotted.
Wondra lives on the property where the law enforcement officers believe the remains may be buried - it is only a stone’s throw away from Vaughan’s family home. Investigators had searched hundreds of acres of land without any success, before beginning their search on Wondra’s home. Police received more than a thousand tips over the past year before a drunk alcoholic led them to the woman’s home, where a search has been going on since last week. Volunteer K-9s have also been at the property helping out with the search.
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On Sunday, before the announcement of her arrest was made, a YouTube channel posted a video of Wondra speaking in front of a refrigerator with the flyer stuck on it. "That's very, very disturbing to see a flyer of a missing person on a possible suspect's refrigerator," Fruitland Police Chief JD Huff had said. He also spoke to the press after the arrest outside her home, according to a report by FOX News.
"Our investigation determined Sarah Wondra may have had knowledge of Michael's death and failed to report it," he said. “We do not believe she is the only person that has knowledge of this, and we will be seeking out those people who could possibly be connected."
Prosecutors had already dismissed a whole line of felony charges against Wondra with regard to her involvement in an unrelated firearms case that also involves her husband, Stacey Wondra. Sarah is due for a court appearance on Monday, November 21. A preliminary hearing is scheduled as well.
Michael went missing in July last year and has been the subject of an intense search effort ever since. The Independent reported that searches have been going on with heavy equipment like diggers and excavators, along with cadaver dogs.
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