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The suspect remains in custody.
By Dan O'Reilly — Written on Mar 31, 2022
The body of Naomi Irion has been found two weeks after she disappeared, authorities have confirmed.
The 18-year-old was last seen on March 12 in her car in the carpark of a Fernley, Nevada Walmart before driving off with an unknown man.
She typically waits in the carpark before taking a shuttle to her job at a Panasonic factory but never made it to work.
Naomi Irion's body was found in a remote part of Churchill County.
Investigators were called to the area after receiving a tip. Churchill County Sheriff's Office and Washoe County Sheriff's Office shared a joint statement confirming that Irion's body was recovered from a gravesite at the location.
"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 release said.
Troy Driver was arrested on kidnapping charges related to Naomi Irion's disappearance.
The 41-year-old Nevada man remains in custody since his Friday arrest but has not been charged in connection with her death at this time.
Driver “did hold or detain her for the purpose of committing sexual assault and/or purpose of killing her,” according to the two-page criminal complaint filed Wednesday in Lyon County’s Canal Township Justice Court.
At a hearing Wednesday, Judge Lori Matheus set conditions to Driver's bail, which was previously set at $750,000.
Naomi Irion's suspected kidnapper was seen entering her car in the video footage.
Irion has been missing since early in the morning of Saturday, March 12, 2022, when she was last seen in the parking lot of a Walmart in Fernley, Nevada.
Irion’s mother, Diana Irion, said of her daughter’s disappearance, “They confirmed that she missed her shifts Saturday and Sunday, which was really unusual. My daughter was extremely reliable.”
With the questions around Irion’s whereabouts, her family and local authorities began to search for her.
The CCTV footage reportedly showed a man that walked to the lot from a nearby homeless camp; after walking around in the parking lot, the man could be seen approaching Irion’s car.
The man could be seen getting into Irion’s car and driving away.
It appears that he said something to Irion to cause her to move from her driver seat into the passenger seat before he entered the car.
Valley was shocked by what he saw on the CCTV footage, saying “I was mortified. I didn’t expect to see that. I was just trying to verify she made it to Walmart.”
Authorities are using the footage as a part of their search for Naomi Irion. So far, Irion’s car has been found by investigators at an industrial park.
Disturbingly, authorities have said that evidence in the car indicated that a crime was committed. Few other details have been released at this time, but police shared some still images from the CCTV footage from the Walmart parking lot.
Dan O'Reilly is a writer who covers news, politics, and social justice. Follow him on Twitter.