On June 21, 2022, officers with the Oklahoma City Police Department were dispatched to a home located at 617 Southwest 151st Street for an “unknown trouble” call. For those unaware, an unknown trouble call is when the 9-1-1 dispatcher cannot understand the nature of the call, or the caller fails to make a voice response.
When officers arrived at the scene, they made contact with a man named Lyle Wayne Nolan, who claimed to have found his three-year-old granddaughter inside of a trash can in the backyard of the family home. Lyle wasn’t lying. When officers looked inside the trash can, they found the body of a young child who was already beginning to decay. That child was Riley Lynn Nolan, a beautiful little girl with dark brown hair and big brown eyes.
Riley was born on November 8, 2018, to parents Kyle Nolan and Janiece Smith. The parents had been arrested and charged with child neglect in August of 2021. At the time of the couple’s arrest, they left their three children in the custody of Kyle’s mother, 60-year-old Becky Ann Vreeland. Janiece was six months pregnant with her fourth child. According to Kyle, who had been released from jail the same day Riley was discovered, he believed his mother could take better care of his kids than he could. However, what he came home to was a sight he could have never imagined:
“What I hear are the details on what had happened… I just couldn’t imagine, because my main thing was I hope that she didn’t suffer. And then to hear the details and just know that she did… it kills me.”
The Grandmother’s Story vs. The Truth
According to Lyle, his now ex-wife, Becky Ann Vreeland, told him an accident had occurred and she herself had found Riley in the trash can. In fact, she claims she initially found Riley on June 18th, but could not be bothered to call the police or report her death to anyone. Instead, she allowed her beautiful little granddaughter to rot inside of a hot trash can in the Oklahoma summer heat. The can also contained Riley’s toys and had been covered with two blankets, one of which depicted characters from the movie Frozen.
Becky claimed that she and the children were cleaning up a mess after maggots were found in the kitchen cabinets. (In my opinion, these were probably pantry moth larvae). After they cleaned up the mess, Becky claimed that she and the children ate dinner together and all went to bed. According to Becky, when she woke up the next morning, she realized Riley wasn’t in her bed. She said she went into the backyard and saw that the lid of the trash can was closed.
Supposedly, Becky had placed toys inside the trash can the night before and had left the lid open. She also told authorities she saw a five-to-six-foot-tall pool ladder beside the trash can, which had not been there the night before. Becky was claiming Riley had snuck out of her bed at night while everyone else was asleep, found the trash can full of toys, grabbed a pool ladder to get the toys, and suffocated to death from accidentally falling headfirst into the trash can.
If this story sounds even slightly believable, please keep in mind that Riley was only three years old, and it would have been physically impossible for her to carry a pool ladder of this size by herself to prop it up. Furthermore, authorities noted the ladder next to the trash can was missing its base and would immediately collapse if anyone tried to use it.
Becky told officers that she looked inside the trash can, saw Riley’s feet sticking out of the toys, and noticed her head was buried within them. She claimed she left Riley in the trash can because she was “very upset” about her death. She also claimed she didn’t want to have to tell her son that his daughter was dead until he got out of jail so he could have a happy Father’s Day with his other two children. She later went on to tell reporters that she did not call the police for fear they would take her other grandchildren away from her.
However, the other two children told a much different story. One of the children reported they saw Riley the next morning in her bed, but said she wouldn’t wake up. In fact, both children claimed that Riley had a purple bruise on her forehead.
When police searched Becky’s house, they found blood spatter all over the master bedroom, master bathroom, and several other areas of the home. A total of 28 swabs were taken and analyzed, many of which came back positive for Riley’s DNA. In addition, when searching the master bathroom, police found two small, circular indentations in the wall which appeared to be the size of a child’s head.
Riley’s autopsy completely contradicted her grandmother’s statements. The medical examiner found three separate skull fractures that were not consistent with a fall, meaning it was impossible for them to have been inflicted by simply face-planting into a trash can full of toys. Master Sergeant Gary Knight stated that officers found clear signs of trauma to the child’s body, and the child had been dead for a significant period of time.
Arrest and Legal Circus
Due to these findings, Becky Ann Vreeland was arrested and charged with first-degree homicide and child neglect on June 24, 2022, and was held in the Cleveland County Jail without bond.
On August 5, 2022, things took a bizarre turn when Becky sent a handwritten letter and a proposal to Oklahoma News 4 (KFOR). In the letter, she asked for money and materials in exchange for an exclusive interview. She went on to describe herself as being in desperate need of defense materials and money because she was broke. Becky requested over $1,500 on her books and another $1,000 check to be mailed directly to the jail, which she claimed would be used for “research.” In the letter, Becky stated:
“By depositing the funds, I will realize you want the deal and won’t sign for anyone else.”
This letter also requested several supplies so that Becky could “do her work and clear her mind” in preparation for her trial. This included five books by self-help author Og Mandino, five adult coloring books, five packs of colored pencils, five 8×10 tablets, two sketch pads, 12 legal tablets, 40 stamped envelopes, and two pairs of reading glasses in two different strengths. KFOR did not even consider the proposal because, like most reputable news outlets, the station has a strict policy against paying for interviews. Legal expert Ed Blau noted: “It doesn’t go to her state of mind, it just goes to the fact that she’s trying to make some money.”
On September 7, 2022, Becky appeared in court for a hearing to determine her options to represent herself. She had initially requested to represent herself back in July, but she had a change of heart and asked for a court-appointed attorney, saying it was in her best interest. Even with all of the evidence stacked against her, she maintained her innocence, yelling to reporters as she was led out in handcuffs: “She died peacefully and I didn’t do it! I’d like an interview with the news to get my story out there, but I’m not allowed to!”
On September 12, 2022, Becky got her wish to discuss her side of the case with KOCO News 5. During that one-on-one interview, Becky said that she had custody of her grandchildren for 900 days while their parents served time in jail. She maintained that Riley’s death was an accident and claimed that she kept the toys in the trash bin in the backyard with a ladder next to it for the children to get the toys out (directly contradicting her initial statement to police that the ladder hadn’t been there prior). She claimed that when she woke up and found her dead, the toddler was “looking angelic and resting peacefully.” However, in the very same breath, Becky said that she was ready to plead guilty and be put to death—a bizarre statement if Riley’s death truly was just a tragic accident.
Court Hearings and the “Princess Riley” Obituary
On June 21, 2023, a year after police discovered Riley’s body, Becky went to court for a preliminary hearing that lasted three hours, where three witnesses testified. This included a former tenant who had no idea Riley even existed until he found her sleeping in the laundry room two weeks after he moved into the home. Next was Becky’s ex-husband, Lyle Wayne Nolan, who detailed opening the lid to the trash can and finding Riley’s decaying body covered in maggots. The last witness was the detective who interviewed Becky, noting that during the interview, Becky admitted she had left bruises on her three grandchildren in previous times.
At the time Riley was discovered dead, her father Kyle claimed that he was hoping to regain custody of his remaining children, stating: “Not only did I lose my little girl, I lost my mom as well.” Riley’s mother, Janiece, was sentenced to 90 days in jail with probation for her original neglect charges. At her hearing, the judge said she hoped Riley’s death would help the mother take steps to make changes, and recommended that the couple’s remaining children and new baby be turned over to the Department of Human Services (DHS).
Riley’s funeral service was held on August 2, 2022, at the Memorial Park Funeral Home in Oklahoma City. To close, here is Riley’s incredibly moving and creative obituary:
“Once upon a time in a castle far away, a beautiful princess was born, and her name was Riley Lynn. She filled their lives with an everlasting sunshine. Then, a great holiday was proclaimed throughout the castle, and our story begins on that most joyful day. Everyone who met Princess Riley was graced with a smile that could warm a room and a sweetness that never wavered. Princess Riley treated all of those who dwelled in the castle with kindness and love, never knowing a stranger. She would greet everyone with a hug and a kiss. Being a princess was hard work, and for the lass, it was a duty she was happy to take on. Princess Riley was always dressed in the most elegant ball gowns along with jewels, headbands, and shoes of all sorts, which were only fit for a princess of Riley’s kind.
It wasn’t all work for the princess. Anytime you saw Riley in the castle, you saw her sis and Bubba right by her side. Even living the most royal life, she was able to watch Frozen, Peppa Pig, PAW Patrol, Trolls, and Sofia the First. The princess always had her Peppa Pig and Skye from PAW Patrol stuffed animals to attend royal events as her trusty steeds. On special occasions, she would dress herself up in her Peppa Pig and Sofia the First pajamas in true princess fashion. Her favorite meal to have at the balls was steak, and everyone happily obliged. Riley was the princess every girl in the land wished to be just like. There was never a time you wouldn’t see her with utmost joy. She was a true princess.
Princess Riley received a most honorable invitation from a King, calling on her to accompany him to a grand ball in his Kingdom. The princess was honored to accept. The King sent the most beautiful white dress and a crown. Once the princess was ready to take off on her journey to the Kingdom, she gave her siblings the biggest hugs and kisses. Once the princess arrived at the ball in her chariot, she realized the ball was in her honor. She was speechless. The King approached princess Riley, and she felt as if she knew him from somewhere. He called himself Jesus. He asked the princess to accompany him to a dance. As they danced, Jesus invited princess Riley to stay in his Kingdom on the hill. Though she would miss her life in the castle, she felt that this Kingdom needed a Princess Riley. She knew her siblings would take good care of all in the castle, and one day they would join her in his Kingdom too.”
