Dateline‘s Monday night special, What Happened to JJ and Tylee, shined new light on the case of missing Idaho children Tylee Ryan and J.J. Vallow, but the special’s main subject, Melanie Gibb, is catching backlash. Throughout the special, Gibb, Lori Vallow‘s former best friend, gave never-before-revealed insight into the confounding case, which recently tragically led to the discovery of the two children’s remains on their stepfather Chad Daybell‘s property.
Speaking with Dateline just a day after the remains were found, Gibb spoke on Vallow and Daybell’s relationship, stating that she saw Daybell as “the hand and her as the puppet on that hand.” Gibb described Vallow as “manipulative” and able to make you “feel like what she was saying was true.” She also recalled a phone call she had with Daybell in which he instructed her not to pick up her phone when she was contacted by Rexburg police.
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As viewers tuned into the special, the criticism towards Gibb poured in on social media, with many claiming that she was “complicit” and didn’t do enough to put an end to the series of events that would eventually lead to the deaths of Tylee and JJ. Keep scrolling to see what social media had to say.
Reaction to Dateline: OMG! Melanie Gibb?!! Really??? Really? She is going to act like a victim? #Dateline #chaddaybell #LoriVallow #wherearethekids #tyleeandjj
— Amy Gibbs (@amysframeshop) June 23, 2020
I’m not a big fan of Melanie Gibb. I’m glad she’s cooperating now, but IMO it’s a little too late…
— Alice in Wonderland (@AliceAK83) June 21, 2020
HOW THE FUCK CAN YOU SAY “MELANIE GIBB IS A HERO” WHEN SHE DIDN’T EVEN TALK TO OR CALL THE POLICE BACK UNTIL DECEMBER 6TH?!! SHE EVEN HEARD LORI CALL TYLEE A ZOMBIE SPRING OF 2019! ALEX’S PHONE PINGS “HELPED” LOCATE THE BODIES, MORON!
— ImFcknRakin! (@ImFcknRakin) June 20, 2020
Lord that woman is dumb as a box of rocks! pic.twitter.com/lKQtAnawBW
So Melanie Gibb Knew all of this since last year and yet a month ago she still “loves Chad” and believes he is a good man while her sorrow lies w/ #LoriVallow because “she is not free to be with Chad” #ChadDaybell
— Sips Up & Ciao Down (@SipsUpButtercup) June 20, 2020
She is absolutely complicit. She didn’t report that Lori asked her to lie for a week, giving them lead time to leave town.
— Angie (@angpollema) June 21, 2020
YET #MelanieGibb you still for months and months remained quiet and going on with your prepper pride and “loving” #ChadDaybell and sad for #LoriVallow because she wasn’t free to be with Chad who she loves
— Sips Up & Ciao Down (@SipsUpButtercup) June 23, 2020
#MelanieGibb will always be the woman who could have prevented 4 of the murders and nothing can change that. She went on walks with Chad and Lori where they told her Charles and Tammy were zombies that had to die. https://t.co/Y1KexziiWD
— SUPER EMPATH🙅♀️😷 (@EmpathSuper) June 23, 2020
Melanie Gibb is no hero she is disgusting, godless don’t let her fool you. Calling her a hero is so far from the truth. She enabled those two. She left her religious teachings looking for Satan and found him.
— Melissa Bateman (@Babydoll41616) June 20, 2020
Melanie Gibb is NO hero! Hero’s save lives not stand by complacent while lives are being taken. Doing the right thing too late does not make someone a hero it just saves their own a$$#loriVallow #ChadDaybell #TyleeRyan #JjVallow #ChatlesVallow #tammyDaybell
— Sips Up & Ciao Down (@SipsUpButtercup) June 20, 2020
She’s at ease and giggling about how silly she was to not realize her dear friends, who she still loves, are serial killers – she’s not clueless. She had every clue.
— tamara lee (@mama2bulldogs) June 23, 2020
Why didn’t Melanie Gibb go to the police/FBI when the people Lori said we’re going to die ended up dead? #DATELINE
— CheekyChops NJ (@BitCheekyNJ) June 23, 2020
#MelanieGibb is so self-serving. Once #LoriVallow and #ChadDaybell predicted the death of #CharlesVallow and he ended up dead she KNEW those kids were in danger. Simple math no matter what you “believe” #Dateline
— tamara lee (@mama2bulldogs) June 23, 2020
What in the actual fuck is wrong with Melanie Gibb? “I didn’t see that coming” @DatelineNBC
— laura (@hanniganlaw) June 23, 2020
Melanie Gibb could have saved these children’s lives. She’s as reprehensible as Lori, Chad, and Alex.
— Jules Johnson (@ForceOfGaia) June 20, 2020
