Raiken Snelling, a former student-athlete at the University of Kentucky, was recently seen performing with the school’s stunt team. This was just months before authorities discovered her newborn baby in a trash bag hidden in a closet. Snelling, 21, was arrested by Lexington Police on August 31. The police reported that the infant was declared deceased at the scene, raising serious questions about the circumstances surrounding his death.
The autopsy on the male infant yielded inconclusive results, with the Fayette County Coroner’s Office indicating that more detailed microscopic analysis would be necessary. Snelling faces charges of tampering with physical evidence, concealing the birth of an infant, and abuse of a corpse, to which she has pleaded not guilty.
A former classmate described Snelling as a “serial bully,” raising further concerns about her character during her time at the university. Police records reveal that the newborn was found “wrapped in a towel in a black garbage bag” inside the closet. Following her arrest, Snelling was released after posting a $100,000 bond and is currently under house arrest. She has reportedly also “certified the birth,” according to those documents.
Prior to this incident, Snelling was involved in cheerleading competitions and participated in the University National Championships alongside California Baptist University in Nashville last April. There is a video of that competition available online.
Despite her recent troubles, Snelling was active in her stunt team just before her arrest, showing a different side of her life as she embraced her teammates. However, a spokesperson from the university has confirmed that Snelling has since dropped out of school.
The University of Kentucky defined its stunt cheerleading as a sport emphasizing technical and athletic prowess, highlighting its growth as one of the fastest-evolving women’s sports in the U.S. This incident, though, casts a dark shadow over her involvement and raises many unanswered questions.
