FORD COUNTY —A Kansas man is going to prison for two violent murders.
On Monday, Ford County District Judge Andrew M. Stein sentenced 33-year-old Michael Peterson to two consecutive life sentences for the 2022 murders of his girlfriend Kayla Vasquez and her 4-year-old daughter Aalilyah Vasquez, according to Ford County Attorney Kevin B. Salzman.
On June 15, 2022, Peterson placed a 911 call claiming he was attacked in his home and that his girlfriend and daughter were missing. An investigation involving the Spearville Police Department, Ford County Sheriff’s Office, and Kansas Bureau of Investigation soon led investigators to the bodies of both Kayla and Aalilyah.
Kayla was discovered in a field in rural Ford County, ratchet strapped to a ladder and wrapped in trash bags. An autopsy later revealed Kayla had blunt force trauma and over 70 stab wounds to her head, neck, and back.
Aalilyah’s body was discovered wrapped in a blanket in a dumpster behind a business in Kinsley, Kansas. She had been strangled to death
Using data from Peterson’s and Vasquez’s vehicle, investigators were able to trace the movements of the vehicle in the early morning hours of June 15, 2022.
Combined with video surveillance footage, investigators observed Peterson driving the couple’s vehicle to several businesses, including WalMart and Sutherlands. On video, investigators observed Peterson purchase trash bags, ratchet straps, and a ladder consistent with the items found with Kayla’s body.
Surveillance from the Kinsley business showed Peterson driving the vehicle to the location and dumping Aalilyah’s body in the dumpster in which she was found.
Peterson was thereafter charged with Capital Murder for the killing of both Aalilyah and Kayla Vasquez.
In February 2024, the parties entered a plea agreement and Peterson pled guilty to two counts of First-Degree Felony Murder and two counts of Aggravated Kidnapping.
At sentencing on Monday, witnesses for the State of Kansas and family members of Kayla and Aalilyah presented evidence and statements for the court’s consideration in sentencing Peterson.
The State urged the court to run all sentences consecutive to one another, which would have prohibited Peterson from applying for parole until he had served approximately 70 years in prison.Family members of Peterson and Peterson himself made statements to the court, asking for mercy. The defense requested the court run all sentences concurrently, which would have allowed Peterson to be eligible for parole after serving only 25 years.
The court also sentenced Peterson to 155 months on each of the two Aggravated Kidnapping charges, but ordered those sentences run concurrently with the life sentences imposed.
Peterson’s two consecutive life sentences means that he will remain incarcerated and is not eligible to apply for release until he has served a minimum of 50 years in custody.Peterson is presently housed in the Ford County Detention Center awaiting transportation to the Kansas Department of Corrections.