TULSA, Okla. — Cody Ketchum was convicted this month of killing his pregnant girlfriend, Holly Cantrell. 2 News spoke exclusively with Ketchum's sister after his conviction.
What happened:
Cantrell disappeared in 2017 in Pittsburg County, and her remains were found by a hunter a year later. At the time of the disappearance, Cantrell was married to Tony Cantrell but was in a relationship with Cody Ketchum.
In February 2018, remains believed to be hers were found in the Cardinal Point Recreation Area in northern Pittsburg County. DNA testing confirmed the identity in 2020.
For nearly two years, investigators gathered evidence, eventually arresting Ketchum. His trial was previously scheduled for 2023 but was postponed for investigators to complete additional forensic testing.
The March trial:
Cody Ketchum's trial lasted almost two weeks and ended in his conviction. 2 News was at the trial and covered it daily.
The hunters who found the purse and remains belonging to Cantrell were called to the stand as witnesses. A private investigator from Tulsa also testified, defending Ketchum.
At the conclusion of the trial, the jury found Cody Ketchum guilty of first-degree murder and a misdemeanor charge of destroying evidence.
Ketchum awaits sentencing, and his lawyers are prepared to file an appeal.
2 News exclusive interview with Ketchum's sister:
Cody Ketchum's sister is speaking out after her brother's conviction.
“I grew up on a farm with three brothers, and I never had any issues with Cody; he’s not the mean one,” said his sister, Michelle.
Michelle said Cody is the youngest sibling. Health issues led to bullying in school and left him with a sixth-grade education. She is stunned by the conviction and said she has been in communication with Holly Cantrell’s family members.
“She apologized because she didn’t think the verdict was going to happen,” said Michelle. "Her family does not think Cody did it, and I don’t think Cody did it.”
Michelle believes the jury didn’t hear important evidence, such as Holly’s husband’s failed lie detector test and her brother’s inconclusive test.
Those tests are often inaccurate, but Michelle was floored by the testimony from the cell phone expert who admitted to inaccuracies. During the trial, they were repeatedly called “scrivener’s errors.”
“If you can use one, you should be able to use the other,” she said.
Michelle believes another flaw was holding the trial in Pittsburg County.
“It was a lost case from the go,” she said.
Jury selection lasted two days, and 2 News reported that finding an impartial jury would prove difficult.
2 News Oklahoma’s Erin Christy reported on the trial. She said that when prosecutors asked the potential jurors if any of the other jurors knew each other, almost all of them raised their hands.
Michelle said one of the jurors’ husbands went to school with Cody.
“But, since she didn’t have a relationship with my brother, they kept her on, but it’s one of those. Everyone is going to know someone, either way.”
Overall, Michelle believes the investigation was flawed because no one else was investigated.
“From the go, [Sheriff] Chris Morris in his first little interview says… he had never thought it was anybody else other than Cody,” she said.
Ketchum was arrested in 2022. At the time, 2 News interviewed Sheriff Morris, who told us Ketchum was a suspect “right off the bat.”
Sentencing is set for next month. The jury recommended life in prison without parole.
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