By the photos he shared on Facebook, Kenneth Vasquez appeared to be a loving husband and father. He often posed with his sons and daughter, Oaklynn, wearing a big smile. Yet it appears his smile was a front, and Vasquez was a monster. On February 14, 2026, police arrived at his home in Stilesville, Indiana, after getting a call about an unresponsive child. When deputies from the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office found 11-year-old Oaklynn, they tried to revive her but declared her dead at the scene. What her father allegedly did next is truly horrifying.
According to a probable cause statement obtained by WISH-TV, police spoke to the father at the scene, and he claimed his daughter hadn’t been feeling well the day before and had been complaining of stomach issues. Vasquez told investigators that Oaklynn went to take a shower, and he and his wife heard a “thud.” When they went to investigate, they claimed they found her on the floor, and her body was cold to the touch.
As deputies took Vasquez into custody, he allegedly grabbed Oaklynn’s face and whispered, “Why couldn’t you just be good?” Investigators spoke to the father and stepmother separately at the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office, WISH-TV reported. Both parents reportedly claimed Oaklynn “was a problematic child that would hurt herself.” But witnesses had very different accounts.
Elba Vazquez’s adult son told police that Oaklynn endured years of abuse at the hands of his mother and her father. Other children in the home corroborated that story, per WISH-TV. Court documents state the Vasquezes punished Oaklynn by making her exercise naked and tying her to a bed frame. They allegedly denied her food and forced her to use a bucket as a toilet while living in the basement alone.
Oaklynn showed signs of severe malnourishment and had wounds and bruises all over her body. According to Kenneth Vasquez’s ex-wife, Lana Vasquez, this never should have happened. Lana Vasquez claimed in a Facebook post that her ex-husband has the same judge as in a previous case that she was involved in. She alleged the judge said she was in contempt for bringing a child to a hearing.
“She disregarded my son at age 14 trying to speak up about his dad. Her words were ‘I will never tell a child they don’t have to see their other parent.’ This could have been prevented in my mind if they had investigated back then,” Lana Vasquez wrote in her post. “Kenny never showed up to that court date and that was swept under the rug. Our contempt of courts canceled each other out was my understanding. Please pray that something is done this time especially if this is the judge that overlooks this case!”
A judge ordered Kenneth Vasquez and Elba Vazquez held on a $1million bond. If what the witnesses say is true, hopefully this time Kenneth Vasquez will stay behind bars for the rest of his life and can never harm another child again.
If you suspect child abuse, you can call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453 (1-800-4-A-Child) or go to Childhelp.org. The hotline is available 24/7.
