BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — A Denham Springs man pleaded guilty to manslaughter in a murder-for-hire case from 2015.
Skyler Williams, 25, of Denham Springs, pleaded to the lesser charge on Monday, March 13. His sentencing is set for Aug. 9.
According to court records, Williams is one of four suspects in the case.
An affidavit stated that East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office deputies were called to investigate a missing persons case on April 13, 2015, near Coursey Boulevard. Deputies were told that the missing person, Tahereh Ghassemi, 54, was last seen in the morning two days before.
The victim’s car was reportedly found burnt on April 12, 2015.
Investigators identified Ghassemi’s ex-husband as a person of interest in the case. Through phone records, investigators said records put suspect Tyler Ashpaugh, 28, of Denham Springs at the victim’s home at the time she disappeared.
Ghassemi’s body was reportedly found on May 16, 2015, in a wooded area in St. Helena Parish with a single gunshot wound. Ashpaugh was arrested two days later.
He identified other suspects in the case as Skyler Williams, Daniel Humberto Richter, 41, and Hamid Ghassemi, 72.
Investigators said during questioning, Ashpaugh said Hamid paid $10,000 to kill his ex-wife. According to arrest documents, Ashpaugh said the victim was shot sometime between her abduction and burial in St. Helena Parish.
Ashpaugh was found dead in his cell at Angola on Friday, Jan. 27.
Leave a Reply