PAYETTE, Idaho (Court TV) — The man accused of murdering a missing 5-year-old who disappeared in 2021 will stand trial this fall, according to a new order filed by the court.
Stacey Wondra sits in court during his preliminary hearing on March 3, 2026. (Court TV)
Stacey James Wondra, 33, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and kidnapping in the case of Michael Vaughan, who was last seen on July 27, 2021.
On Wednesday, Judge Brent Whiting scheduled Wondra’s trial to begin on Sept. 14. The trial proceedings are expected to run for approximately four weeks. Other dates scheduled include a status conference on June 2 and a pretrial conference on Aug. 4. At the brief six-minute hearing, Stacey Wondra’s defense indicated they planned to file motions, but did not indicate what they may be.
Investigators say the defendant kidnapped the child from his home in Fruitland, Idaho, before murdering him, though the child’s body has never been found. Detectives have searched the Wondra property extensively. At Stacey Wondra’s preliminary hearing, prosecutors showed a lengthy police interview in which the defendant claimed his wife, Sarah Wondra, was to blame for the abduction.
In the interview, Stacey Wondra told detectives that he had no part in taking the child and said that he suggested calling the police. But he conceded he did nothing to stop his wife and their two roommates from duct-taping Michael while he screamed for his mother.
Sarah Wondra faced charges for failing to report a death, but those charges were later dropped. No other charges have been filed against any other suspects in Michael’s death.
