McKayla Cheyenne Archambeau Missouri woman charged with Platte County murder of man in his yard. Cordero T. Cervantes indicted on lesser charges. A history of crime.
A Missouri woman was on Friday indicted with the murder of man ‘regarded to have a heart of gold,’ who was killed over the summer. A second individual, was charged with the lesser crimes of tampering with evidence surrounding the victim’s death.
McKayla Cheyenne Archambeau, 22, was indicted on count of murder in the second degree, armed criminal action, tampering with evidence, and tampering with a motor vehicle after allegedly stealing a 2012 Ford Focus and wiping down a vehicle to conceal evidence, documents show, the Kansas City Star reported.
Cordero T. Cervantes, 32, was indicted on one count each of tampering with evidence and tampering with a motor vehicle. He is set to appear in court Nov. 10.
Investigators believe Archambeau pulled the trigger and that she and Cervantes wiped down the victim’s vehicle before stealing a separate car and fleeing the scene, FOX 4 reported.
Grand jurors in Platte County indicted the pair on Friday, Oct. 28, 2022, KSHB reported. The pair were identified as persons of interest in the shooting death of 31-year-old Taylor Hawkins in late June of this year, according to the Platte County Sheriff’s Office.
No known motive
At the time of Hawkins’ shooting death, the deceased white male was found shot in the yard of a residence.
Archambeau and Cervantes who were linked to the man’s death were described as ‘armed and dangerous.’
The defendants apparently fled Missouri and were arrested in ‘another state’ on July 7, 2022, KCTV reported. They were subsequently returned to Platte County.
Archambeau is currently being detained on a $250,000 cash bond; Cervantes is being detained on a $25,000 cash bond.
Cervantes is slated to appear in court in November for a bond reduction hearing. Archambeau, meanwhile, facing substantially more serious charges, WDAF reported.
Platte County, Missouri jail records say Archambeau has been in custody since July 7, 2022.
According to jail and court records, Archambeau is also charged with one count of possessing marijuana or a synthetic cannabinoid. That case appears to be proceeding on a separate docket.
In January, in nearby Clay County, Missouri, Archambeau was charged with resisting or interfering with an officer, a traffic stop, or an arrest, according to a docket entry on a state court website.
While details about what led to the shooting have not been released, Hawkins’ obituary reveals he had a close-knit relationship with this family and a love for music along with a heart of gold. It remained unclear how the victim knew his assailants.
