Former UK Cheerleader Laken Snelling Faces Charges After Allegedly Concealing Newborn's Death

Individuals living with former University of Kentucky competitive cheerleader Laken Snelling described disturbing conduct on the evening she reportedly delivered a baby and concealed its remains in a refuse container.

Snelling's cohabitants reported hearing significant disturbances following her childbirth at approximately 4 a.m. on August 27, as detailed in documents acquired by LEX18.

Around 8:40 a.m. that day, Snelling attributed the commotion to her losing consciousness. Snelling explained she was headed to a medical professional due to "not consuming food and experiencing discomfort."

Based on the retrieved records, Snelling's housemates had become wary, suspecting she was concealing a pregnancy.

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Subsequent to her departure from the residence, her roommates entered Snelling’s personal space and reportedly discovered a “towel saturated with blood on the ground and a plastic receptacle holding indications of a recent birth.”

Upon Snelling's return home near 10:30 a.m. — following a stop at McDonald's — officials interrogated her, and she “confessed to delivering a baby” and to “obscuring the event by removing all traces, depositing all utilized cleaning materials into a dark refuse bag, which also contained the baby, enveloped in a towel,” according to the documentation.

During her interrogation, Snelling accounted for the loud sounds, stating she had lost consciousness post-delivery and collapsed onto the newborn's body. Upon regaining awareness, she observed the baby “discoloring to blue and purple.”

Following this, Snelling presumed the infant had expired and purportedly swaddled the newborn in a cloth before returning to slumber.

Upon awakening to her 7:30 a.m. alarm, Snelling deposited the baby and the afterbirth into a dark trash bag located within her wardrobe, as stated in the records.

Ultimately, Snelling was taken into custody on August 30 and faced charges of desecrating a corpse, interfering with physical evidence, and hiding the delivery of a baby.

At a court hearing on September 2, she entered a plea of not guilty to all allegations and was freed on a $100,000 surety. Since then, she has been under home confinement with her parents in Tennessee.

Snelling reappeared in court on Friday, September 26, receiving backing from about 10 previous academic peers.

At the proceeding, Snelling relinquished her entitlement to a preliminary examination. Her matter will now advance to a grand jury.

Snelling previously attended the University of Kentucky and participated in the institution’s STUNT cheerleading squad.

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A representative for the university verified to Us Weekly on September 6 that Snelling is no longer registered as a student at the institution nor is she part of the STUNT team.

The infant’s mortality reason was deemed undetermined, since “comprehensive microscopic investigations are crucial to ascertain the reason and nature of the demise,” according to a report from the Fayette County Coroner’s Office acquired by Us on September 4.

“I acknowledge the public’s apprehension and delicate feelings regarding a child’s passing,” stated Fayette County Coroner Gary Ginn in the document. “Our team is carrying out an exhaustive and systematic inquiry into the death to guarantee every detail is rigorously evaluated.”

The inquiry concerning the infant’s fatality remains categorized as “active” by the Lexington Police Department.