A babysitter convicted of child abuse in 2024 has now been charged with an infant’s murder from a case stemming back to 2018.
Holly Sheppard was arrested by Oklahoma County Sheriff’s deputies on Monday.
She’s charged with one count of murder. In January 2018, Oklahoma City Police investigators say a 22-day-old infant went to St. Anthony’s Hospital with non-accidental abusive head trauma.
The infant died a few days later. Investigators believe the infant died of blunt force trauma to the head.
The infant’s mother said she found Sheppard on Facebook offering babysitting services. The mother left the infant in the care of Sheppard for four days when the incident occurred, according to court documents.
Five years later, a 3-month-old went to a hospital in Ponca City with non-accidental abusive head injuries. The infant’s mother found Sheppard on Facebook advertising babysitting services. The mother had left the infant in Sheppard’s care for a few days when the incident occurred, according to court documents.
According to court documents, Ponca City Police were able to piece together that the infant was in Sheppard’s care at the time of the trauma. The investigator in the Oklahoma City incident spoke with a child abuse expert, who found similarities between the two infant’s injuries. The expert believed both infants suffered blunt force trauma to the head, either by being struck with something or by their heads striking something.
In December 2024, Sheppard entered a blind plea of no contest to child abuse in Kay County and was sentenced to life in prison, with the potential for release after 25 years. In April 2025, a warrant was issued for her arrest in Oklahoma City.
Sheppard is currently being held in the Oklahoma County Detention Center without bond.
