Ky. man gets 50 years for killing girlfriend's 4-year-old daughter, leaving body in suitcase

BULLITT COUNTY, Ky. (TCD) -- A judge sentenced a 28-year-old man to five decades in prison for killing his girlfriend's missing 4-year-old daughter, putting her body in a suitcase, and abandoning the case in a wooded area.

WHAS-TV reports Dakota Hill received the 50-year sentence Thursday, July 6, which came about a month after he pleaded guilty to murder, abuse of a corpse, and tampering with evidence. Serenity's mother, Catherine "Abby" McKinney, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in April following a manslaughter plea, according to WHAS.

WLKY-TV reports Hill will be eligible for parole after 20 years, though Bullitt County Commonwealth Attorney Bailey Taylor said the "odds of him being paroled are between slim and none."

McKinney and Hill were arrested in February 2022 on outstanding warrants, and they were both charged with murder later that month. Serenity's grandfather reported her missing Feb. 2, 2022, though she reportedly had not been seen since Dec. 24, 2020. Investigators found her body in a wooded area Feb. 18, 2022.

WHAS reports Serenity's decomposing body had been wrapped in plastic and she suffered fractures to her arms and legs. Although the coroner said she died by homicide, her cause of death remained undetermined.

At the sentencing, Serenity's grandmother, Melody Roller, said, "She deserved more. She deserved to live her life."

MORE:

• 'She deserved more': Man charged with murdering 4-year-old girl sentenced to 50 years in prison - WHAS
• No one will go to trial for Serenity McKinney's murder; Second suspect takes plea deal, 5/31/2023 - WHAS
• Man sentenced to decades in prison for death of 4-year-old Serenity McKinney - WLKY
• Missing 4-year-old girl’s remains were found wrapped in plastic inside suitcase, 10/19/2022 - WHAS
• Mom of 4-year-old Kentucky girl missing since 2020 arrested with boyfriend, 2/9/2022 - TCD