Court records describe a route from Scott County to Madison County before April Arnett’s body was found in 2019.
RICHMOND, Ky. — The body of April Arnett was found beside Old Lexington Road in 2019, but investigators say the case now headed for trial began miles away and included a failed attempt to dispose of her from a bridge.
That alleged route is central to the murder and kidnapping case against Ryan “Todd” Crawley, a 42-year-old Sadieville man accused of killing Arnett, wrapping her body and hiding it under his trailer. The case now has a trial date of May 17-28, 2027, in Scott County. Prosecutors say the 39-year-old Lexington mother of three was killed in Scott County on Aug. 13, 2019, and found four days later in northern Madison County.
The first public notice came around 9 p.m. on Aug. 17, 2019, when Kentucky State Police were told that a possible body had been found off Kentucky Highway 2328, also known as Old Lexington Road. The road runs in northern Madison County near the Madison-Fayette County line and close to the Kentucky River area. State police said the body was taken to the state medical examiner’s office in Frankfort for an autopsy and identification. Two days later, police identified the woman as April D. Arnett of Lexington.
Investigators later said the roadside discovery did not show the full path of the case. Court citations say Ryan Crawley and his cousin, Ronald “Doug” Crawley, drove into Madison County with Arnett’s body wrapped in a tarp and cinder blocks attached. Authorities allege they tried to throw her body from Old Clays Ferry Bridge, but the body became stuck on a guy wire. The citations say the men then put the body back into the vehicle and left it beside Old Lexington Road, where it was later discovered.
The bridge allegation gives the case one of its clearest physical scenes. Old Clays Ferry Bridge crosses the Kentucky River area between central Kentucky counties and sits near a corridor used by drivers moving between Madison, Fayette and nearby communities. Investigators have not publicly released every detail about the bridge scene, including what, if any, physical evidence was recovered there. The indictment and citations, however, frame the bridge as part of an alleged effort to conceal Arnett’s death after she was killed elsewhere.
The Scott County indictment filed in 2026 added murder and kidnapping charges years after the first evidence-related cases. It alleges Crawley killed Arnett on Aug. 13, 2019, then concealed or altered evidence by wrapping her body and storing it under his trailer. He previously pleaded guilty in Madison County to evidence tampering and abuse of a corpse. In the new case, he has pleaded not guilty to murder and kidnapping. The cause and manner of Arnett’s death have not been fully explained in public records.
Ronald Crawley also became a focus soon after Arnett was identified. In September 2019, Kentucky State Police said they were searching for him in connection with Arnett’s death investigation and described him as wanted on evidence-tampering and corpse-abuse allegations. Police said he should be considered armed and dangerous. He was arrested Oct. 6, 2019, in Cave Junction, Oregon, by Oregon State Police and lodged in the Josephine County Jail. He later pleaded guilty to evidence tampering and abuse of a corpse in Madison County.
The prosecution widened again in 2025, when three more people were arrested in connection with the case. Jenny Keller, Bridgett Lyons and James Watson were added to the list of defendants. Keller was accused of helping arrange the kidnapping. Lyons and Watson were accused, along with Doug Crawley, of helping Ryan Crawley destroy or remove evidence. The charging decisions suggest prosecutors now plan to argue that Arnett’s death involved a larger group, not only the two men tied to the alleged disposal attempt.
Arnett’s family has waited through each stage. Her sister, Cara Parsons, said the news that Arnett had been found dead beside a road was hard to accept. Parsons remembered Arnett for her love for her children and her place in a large family that included parents, siblings and step-siblings. “I don’t think April would ever understand how big of a hole she did leave,” Parsons said. Her comments brought a personal account into a case often described through charges, court dates and locations.
The coming trial is expected to turn on the timeline prosecutors can prove. They must connect the alleged killing in Scott County, the alleged concealment under Crawley’s trailer, the trip into Madison County, the bridge account and the final roadside discovery. Defense lawyers may challenge how investigators built that chain across seven years. They may also question the use of older evidence, statements from other defendants or any claims based on court citations rather than direct physical proof presented at trial.
Crawley’s attorneys have already pointed to the timing of the murder and kidnapping charges, which came long after Arnett’s body was found. The delay could become a major theme before the jury. Prosecutors may argue that later arrests and records strengthened the case. Defense lawyers may argue the gap raises questions about reliability. The judge will likely decide pretrial disputes over what jurors may hear about the earlier guilty pleas, the alleged bridge attempt and any statements from co-defendants.
The case now stands as both a murder prosecution and a test of a years-long investigation. The May 2027 trial date gives prosecutors and defense attorneys a schedule for motions, witness planning and evidence hearings. Arnett’s death remains the center of the case, but the road, the trailer and the bridge are likely to shape how jurors hear the story.
Author note: Last updated May 25, 2026.