Tragic turn in the case of the missing Skelton brothers: a mother wants her sons declared dead

Andrew, Alexander and Tanner Skelton have been missing from Morenci, Michigan for almost 14 years. Their mother is now asking the state to legally declare the boys dead.

Tanya Zuvers filed a petition with the Lenawee County Probate Court in December 2023 to officially name her sons, who were 9, 7 and 5 years old, respectively, when last seen, dead. A preliminary hearing was held last week.

The boys were last seen the day after Thanksgiving in 2010, in their father's care.

In Michigan, a person is usually considered dead after five years of missing.

Judge Catherine Sala prepared the case for a trial which will begin on July 29.

“This decision came after much thought and discussion with my family and friends. It was not taken lightly and was certainly a difficult decision to make. No parent wants to lose a child, but have to to intervene in the courts and declare him deceased is simply unfathomable,” Zuvers wrote in a statement last week.

News week contacted Zuvers for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.

Zuvers regularly posts about his sons. On November 4, 2020, she paid tribute to Alexander on what would have been his 17th birthday.

“There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think of you and your brothers,” she posted. “Today is supposed to be a day to celebrate you and I hope and pray that wherever you are, you are with your brothers and YOU celebrate together today.”

What happened?

The Skelton brothers were reported missing in Morenci the day after Thanksgiving in 2010.

The boys were in the care of their father, John Skelton.

Zuvers had sole custody of her sons, but she allowed her ex-husband to have the children for the holidays. Zuvers filed for divorce on September 13, 2010.

Police learned through interviews that John had traveled 25 miles to Holiday City, Ohio around the same time his sons were last seen live. Phone records suggest the trip took place between 4:29 a.m. and 6:46 a.m. on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

John, who was a long-distance truck driver, had told police he had left his children with a woman named Joann Taylor. He said he didn't know her but met her when Taylor had car trouble on the side of the road.

He also claimed that they were placed in an underground sanctuary to protect them from their mother. The authorities did not believe him and accused him of child abandonment.

A month before the brothers disappeared, John filed for custody, accusing Zuvers of being a registered sex offender.

Zuvers previously pleaded guilty to fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct for having sex with a 14-year-old boy in 1998. She has, however, repeatedly denied abusing her own sons.

In 2018, John told local news station WDIV that he had left the boys with two women and a man who planned to take them to a farm in Ohio. He still has not identified the said organization.

Court documents allege John searched online for how to break his neck a week before his sons disappeared.

John pleaded no contest to three counts of unlawful imprisonment in September 2011. He was sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison and is scheduled to be released in November 2025.

John did not attend Thursday's preliminary session.

Anyone with information about this case or the whereabouts of the Skelton brothers should call the Michigan State Police at 1-517-636-0689 or NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST.

Other missing children

In addition to the Skelton brothers, 34 other AMBER Alerts have remained unresolved since 2003.

In 2023, 1,200 children were found using the AMBER alert system and 180 children were rescued using emergency alerts.

Alerts are just one tool to help find missing children.

“Every child listed in an AMBER Alert has been reported missing to law enforcement. The goal of an AMBER Alert is to instantly galvanize the community to assist in the search and safe recovery of a missing child “, Alan S. Nanavaty, executive director of special programs for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, in a previous interview with News week.

Nanavaty said that on average, fewer than 200 AMBER Alerts are issued each year. Alerts are broadcast by radio, television, street signs, cell phones and other data-enabled devices. The AMBER Alert system is used in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Indian Country, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“Obviously, we would like to see every missing child case solved and the child found alive,” Nanavaty said. News week.