Upon arrival, police arrival they found the bodies of a woman and a teenage girl.
On September 19, 2025 around 11 a.m., police say dispatch got a 911 call from a person who performed a welfare check on a coworker who did not report to work that morning. First responders arrived at the scene on Spring Street off Flemingsburg Road in Morehead, Kentucky. Upon arrival, they found the bodies of a woman and a teenage girl.
The victims were identified as 37-year-old Kayla Blake and her daughter, 13-year-old Kennedi McWhorter.
Kentucky State Police’s (KSP) initial investigation determined the suspect as 44-year-old Joshua W. Cottrell.
KSP says troopers located Cottrell at a Paducah area hospital at around 2 p.m.
Cottrell was treated, released and charged with two counts of Murder and one count of Tampering with Physical Evidence. He is being held at the McCracken County Jail.
