Steven D. Bails Jr., top left, Narena Bails, top right, Alexander Feko, bottom left, and Sierra Bemis, bottom right, were sentenced in the slaying of Kayla Sedoskey, left photo. (Victim’s photo from her obituary; Mug shots from Monroe County Sheriff’s Office)
Four people learned their fate in the “catfish” killing of a young mother lured to an abandoned juvenile detention center in Michigan, where she was shot in the head.
Steven D. Bails Jr., 45, was sentenced to life without parole after being convicted in March of first-degree murder in the death of 23-year-old Kayla Sedoskey. His wife Narena Bails, 25, and Sierra Bemis, 24, pleaded no contest to second-degree murder — Narena Bails received between 13 and 30 years, Bemis got 18 to 30 years. Alexander Feko, 27, pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with evidence and three counts of accessory to a homicide after the fact and received 5 to 10 years. Two others charged in the case await sentencing on May 30.
Monroe County Circuit Judge Daniel S. White called the murder plot ridiculous.
“You can’t just eliminate someone because they irritate you or gather a bunch of sycophants to follow you in this ridiculous plan,” White said before sentencing Steven Bails, according to a video shot in court by Detroit Fox station WJBK.
The defendants’ lawyers planned to appeal, the station reported.
As Law&Crime reported, the case came to light after troopers with the Michigan State Police found Sedoskey’s body at the abandoned Boysville Juvenile Detention Center in Frenchtown Township, southwest of Detroit, on March 2, 2023. Sedoskey’s body had been bound and wrapped in a tarp, which had then been stuffed under a door. She had been shot three times, including once at point-blank range to the top of her head, prosecutors said.
Citing Michigan State Police this past April, local ABC affiliate WTVG reported the victim was “catfished” online and lured to the facility weeks before her body was found. Once there, Sedoskey was attacked by her killers, Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffery A. Yorkey said in a news release.
Yorkey said the motive for the killing is unclear, but evidence suggested it could have been a “wedding present” from Steven Bails to his wife or “simply a revenge killing” for words exchanged between one of the other defendants and the victim.
Sedoskey’s obituary said she was a member of the Saginaw Chippewas tribe and was proud of her Native American heritage.
“She enjoyed camping and being out in nature,” the obit said. “Kayla was a fan of the anime artform. Of her many passions in life, Kayla was dedicated to caring for the people around her. She will truly be missed by her friends and family.”
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