Naman Shrestha
The episode titled ‘The Witch Doctor’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Who Hired the Hitman?’ delves deep into the horrific killing of a 24-year-old mechanic named Trevor Dykes. As the gruesome murder shook the entire community to its core, the detectives launched an extensive investigation in order to get to the bottom of the case and apprehend the perpetrator/s responsible for the crime. The documentary also features exclusive interviews with Trevor’s family and friends, along with the officials directly or indirectly linked to the investigation.
Trevor Dykes Was Shot While His Fiancée Was With Him
Born on January 25, 1991, to Charles “Chuck” Dykes and Kim Bixler in Corbin, Kentucky, Trevor Wayne Dykes shared a close bond with his sister, Lawana Collins, who had the same father as him but a different mother. He first dipped his toes in the dating scene when he was 16 years old. One of his earliest relationships was with Brittany Davidson, with whom he shared a daughter named Skyleigh Davidson. After severing ties with Brittany, he soon got into a relationship with a woman named Ashley Nicole Lawson. During the time they were together, they also welcomed a son named Trendon Dykes into the world.
After breaking up with Lawson, Trevor started dating Ashley Collis, with whom he got engaged. The resident of Manchester, Kentucky, had a passion for cars and racing, which led him to become a mechanic at Hot Rod’s Service Center. His high hopes of having a bright future with Collis were abruptly shattered on the morning of July 27, 2015, when the 24-year-old mechanic was ambushed in his Goose Rock, Kentucky, home. Around 8 am, Collis called 911 and informed the authorities that her fiancé had been shot multiple times by a mysterious shooter, who fled the area after his gun jammed. The police rushed to the crime scene and discovered that Trevor had died of three gunshot wounds from a .45 caliber handgun — one each in the arm, chest, and head.
Trevor Dykes’ Past Came Back to Haunt Him as Multiple Perpetrators Were Involved in His Killing
As part of the murder investigation, the authorities dug deep into Trevor Dykes’ life and found out that he was involved in a heated custody battle with a former girlfriend named Ashley Nicole Lawson over their son, Trendon. Thus, she became a person of interest in the case. At the time, she was engaged to Thomas Dan Miracle, who was also looked into by the police. Thus, Lawson was questioned by the detectives, but she claimed that she was with her fiancé at her house when the murder was committed. However, upon examining Thomas’ cell phone records, the detectives placed him at Trevor’s house at the time of the murder.
It turned out that Thomas reached out to a low-level drug dealer named Roscoe Henson and offered him $5,000 to get rid of Trevor. According to reports, the murder-for-hire plot stemmed from the custody battle between Lawson and Trevor, with Lawson also taking part in the plan. When the detectives interviewed Roscoe, he claimed that the original plan was to kill Trevor as well as his then-partner, Ashley Collins, and then set the house on fire. Roscoe claimed that he changed his mind because he believed a child was in the house. Instead of burning down the entire property, he then reportedly set fire to the evidence that could link him to the crime, including a pair of gloves and items he used during the shooting.
Armed with enough evidence, the police arrested Thomas Miracle on August 11, 2015, and charged him with solicitation to commit murder. The following day, Roscoe Henson was charged with the murder of 24-year-old Trevor. According to reports, Roscoe accepted Thomas’ offer and waited outside Trevor’s house on the fateful day of July 27, 2015. When Trevor stepped outside to head for work, Roscue shot him to death. Thomas claimed that Lawson had no idea about the murder plan. Eventually, on September 3, she was also arrested under suspicion of planning the hit on Trevor.
Lawson, Thomas, and Roscoe Are Currently Incarcerated at Separate Kentucky Prison Facilities
Initially, Thomas Miracle pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. However, he ended up pleading guilty and agreeing to testify against Ashley Lawson for a lesser sentence. Roscoe Henson also pleaded guilty to murder-for-hire in May 2018. On the other hand, Lawson maintained her innocence and decided to plead not guilty. Several years after the murder of Trevor Dykes, Ashley Lawson’s trial began on December 8, 2022. During her five-day trial, both Roscoe and Thomas testified against her. Meanwhile, the defense argued that she had no involvement in the plotting of Trevor’s murder. Although the jury returned deadlocked after the first deliberation, they eventually found her guilty of criminal conspiracy to commit murder.
On December 14, she was sentenced to 20 years in prison. While Thomas was sentenced to 30 years in prison, Roscoe received a life imprisonment sentence with the possibility of parole in 25 years. As of today, 33-year-old Ashley Lawson is serving her sentence at Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women in Pewee Valley, Kentucky, with her parole eligibility date scheduled for July 2032. 45-year-old Thomas Daniel Miracle is incarcerated at Northpoint Training Center in Burgin, Kentucky, with his parole eligibility date set for July 2035. As for 42-year-old Roscoe Ray Henson, he is held at Little Sandy Correctional Complex in Sandy Hook, Kentucky, while he looks forward to his parole eligibility in July 2040.
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