Lexington man sentenced for fetal homicide, plus other Fayette Co. court updates
Court cases stemming from several homicides in Central Kentucky moved through the court system in March.
Developments included a man sentenced for a 2023 fetal homicide and another man who pleaded guilty to a charge of murder that left a man dead inside a Lexington motel for days.
Here are updates on murder cases previously covered by the Herald-Leader.
Man sentenced for fetal homicide
Fayette Circuit Judge Kimberly Bunnell sentenced a Lexington man charged with fetal homicide to seven years in prison on March 28.
Rigoberto Vasquez-Barradas, 26, pleaded guilty to amended charges of third-degree fetal homicide and second-degree assault — domestic violence under extreme emotional disturbance.
He was originally charged with first-degree fetal homicide, first-degree strangulation and second-degree assault — domestic violence, according to court documents.
He was arrested after he beat a pregnant woman in January 2023. He pleaded guilty to the charges on Jan. 21, 2025, according to court documents.
Vasquez-Barradas shoved the woman to the ground four times and kicked her in the stomach three times, court documents say.
Vasquez-Barradas also strangled the woman while she was on the ground, according to court documents. Police said they were called to a local hospital that was treating the domestic violence victim the morning after the assault.
Medical staff told investigators the assault caused the placenta from the fetus to separate from the woman’s uterine wall, according to court documents. That caused the fetus to die. The woman also sustained serious physical injuries.
“Due to the placenta separating from the uterine wall, it creates serious physical injury within the mother, and without proper medical attention within very minimal amount of time, it can lead to death due to the risks inside her body,” said Detective Zachary Flowers with the Lexington Police Department testified previously.
Man pleads guilty to 2022 murder, woman sentenced
A man charged in a 2022 murder that took place inside a Lexington motel entered a guilty plea on March 20, according to court documents.
Danny Lee Sims, 53, pleaded guilty to murder and tampering with physical evidence on March 20. He was charged in April 2022 in the murder of William Ashby, who was found dead inside the Catalina Motel in Lexington on April 8, 2022.
Alysha Noel, 33, was also charged with murder and evidence tampering as a result of Ashby’s death. She pleaded guilty in April 2024 to amended charges of facilitation of murder, with the tampering charge expected to be dismissed, according to court documents.
Noel faces five years in prison, according to court documents.
Police responded to the motel on April 8, 2022, after receiving a tip that there may be a dead person in a hotel room, police said.
Officers responded and did find a body, later identified as Ashby, under a mattress and box spring with his feet bound together by duct tape.
Court documents say Noel struck Ashby several times with a metal object, and Noel stabbed and cut him.
Police also located an overdue rental car leased to Sims directly in front of the room, which had two newly purchased tarps, a roll of duct tape, and some of Noel’s belongings, according to police testimony.
Sims and Noel were on scene when police arrived and were taken to police headquarters for questioning.
Sims told police all three were in the room when Ashby and Noel got into an argument, according to police.
Sims got involved in the argument, then proceeded to assault Ashby with the metal tool before Noel cut Ashby’s throat with a box cutter while he was lying on the floor, police testified previously.
Based on evidence and accounts, detectives determined the killing took place April 4, four days before police found Ashby’s body.
Sims faces up to 25 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for May 1.
