Tanya Zuvers, the mother of three young boys who disappeared on Thanksgiving 2010, testified Monday that she is a registered sex offender as she provided testimony against her ex-husband, John Skelton, who is accused of murdering their sons.
Zuvers admitted in court that she has a felony conviction as a sex offender stemming from a relationship with a 14-year-old boy that occurred prior to her marriage to Skelton. The admission came as she detailed the deterioration of her relationship with Skelton, 54, who faces three counts of murder and tampering with evidence in the deaths of Andrew, 9, Alexander, 7, and Tanner, 5.
Skelton has previously served a 15-year sentence for unlawful imprisonment related to failing to return the boys to their mother. He was released in late November and is now being held on a $60 million bond after a judge formally declared the boys dead last year. Authorities had long believed the boys were deceased and Skelton was responsible, but their bodies were never recovered, leading to the initial unlawful imprisonment charges.
Skelton claims he handed the boys over to the "Underground Sanctuary," an organization he described as clandestine and created to protect children from harmful situations. Investigators have found no evidence of this organization and have stated that Skelton has provided inconsistent accounts of who he entrusted his children to, alleging he has been untruthful about their whereabouts.
During the preliminary hearing, Zuvers recounted the breakdown of their marriage beginning in September 2010. Skelton had expressed a desire to move the family from Morenci, Michigan, to Florida for job opportunities, a move Zuvers opposed due to her family ties and the children's established schooling. Her concern about leaving the state was compounded by her status as a registered sex offender.
Zuvers testified that on September 13, 2010, the boys' school contacted her after Skelton signed them out for the day, stating he did not want them to take homework and inquiring about transferring records for a move to Florida. This incident prompted Zuvers to seek legal advice regarding preventing Skelton from taking the boys out of state, and her attorney advised her to file for divorce.
Later that day, Skelton left with the two older boys. They called Zuvers the following day, wishing her a happy birthday and stating they were at "daddy's friend's house" in Florida. Zuvers then traveled to Florida to attempt to retrieve the boys with local police assistance.
The couple's relationship further deteriorated leading up to Thanksgiving. Zuvers stated that the Monday before the holiday, Skelton told the boys their mother had been to prison and was a sex offender. When confronted, Skelton claimed the boys had overheard him discussing it.
For Thanksgiving, custody was split, with Skelton having the boys from Wednesday afternoon through Friday afternoon. Zuvers stated that Skelton called her phone extensively throughout Thanksgiving Day. On Friday evening, when Zuvers inquired about picking the boys up earlier, Skelton informed her they were not home. She observed his van in the driveway from her kitchen window, which she found unusual.
Shortly after, Zuvers received a lengthy message from a woman with the same name as Skelton's friend, which she suspected was actually Skelton himself. The message blamed her for the relationship's demise and stated Skelton had left the sons with the sender, who would watch them until his return.
Skelton then called Zuvers, admitting he had not been entirely honest. He claimed he was at a health center for a foot injury and that the boys were with a friend in Jackson, Michigan, to be dropped off at 3 p.m. However, a nurse later informed Zuvers that Skelton had been treated for a suicide attempt earlier that day.
When the boys were not returned as expected, Zuvers called 911, and an Amber Alert was issued. The day after Thanksgiving, Zuvers returned to the marital home and found it in disarray, with a smashed curio cabinet and severed appliance cords. Passages in her Bible were circled in Skelton's handwriting, referencing a wife pleasing her husband and being bound to him. A rope was also found tied to a banister. Skelton had also written a letter to Zuvers apologizing for hurting her and stating his actions were meant to end his pain of losing her.
Investigators began treating the disappearance as a homicide two to three weeks later. While Zuvers testified that Skelton never abused the sons, she recalled an instance where he spanked them with a belt for jumping on the bed and breaking a television. She also stated he never confessed to killing the children, and their bodies remain unrecovered.