UPDATE: July 22 at 3 p.m.
Winchester police asked the public for additional information on 44-year-old Brian Epperson, the man charged with murder in the death of 32-year-old Kristen Morris and in connection with two other women's death.
Winchester Chief of Police Travis Thompson released the following statement:
"The Winchester Police Department would like to speak with anyone that has had a personal relationship with Brian Epperson, has used Brian Epperson as a contractor, or Brian Epperson has had access to, or completed maintenance inside your residence in the past 3 years."
Winchester police said that anyone who is willing to speak with authorities can contact Detective Sergeant Reed at mreed@winchesterky.com or 859-745-7418.
UPDATE: July 16 at 1:45 p.m.
Additional revelations emerged during a preliminary hearing for 44-year-old Brian Epperson on Tuesday, who is charged with the murder of 32-year-old Kristen Morris in a drug overdose case out of Powell County.
During the preliminary hearing, in which Epperson appeared on Zoom, a detective revealed in court that there is a third drug overdose death that Epperson is allegedly connected to. The woman was reportedly found dead in a Lexington motel in November 2024.
The detective reported that her toxicology report showed she also died of a drug overdose and tests of her blood showed 72,000+ nanograms per millileter of methamphetamine. The detective testified earlier that he had seen overdoses occur at as little as 90 nanograms per millileter in blood tests.
The detective noted that Morris was not a drug user and she only used prescribed drugs.
Further, Epperson has been charged with video voyeurism after an investigation in late-June led detectives to find a video on his phone that allegedly showed a woman in a "sexual performance on the video," a citation read.
During the investigation, a detective was interviewing a woman when a digital recording device was found in the woman's bedroom. The woman told police that Epperson had purchased the digital clock and placed it there.
According to the citation, the video was allegedly taken without the woman's consent or knowledge.
The possession of a controlled substance and video voyeurism charges were waived to a grand jury on Wednesday.
Original Story:
A complaint warrant obtained by LEX 18 on Thursday provides additional details on the reported murder that occurred in Powell County, in which a woman was found dead in an Airbnb in May.
The warrant read that at around 4 p.m. on May 31, KSP responded to the 5700 block of Patsy Road in Stanton. Upon arrival, a woman, identified as 32-year-old Kristen Morris, was found unresponsive.
According to the warrant, Morris was staying in the Airbnb with a man, identified as 44-year-old Brian P. Epperson. He was reportedly present when police arrived on the scene. The coroner reportedly found "unknown tablets filled with an unknown substance."
A toxicology report was conducted and the coroner found that Morris, "suffered an overdose with her NG/ML of blood being 57000+." According to the medical examiner, a typical overdose would be around "200NG/ML of blood." The examiner noted that "the only thing in Morris' system was methamphetamine," the warrant reported.
Further, the warrant detailed that on June 27, the Winchester Police Department received a call regarding a missing person at the Red Roof Inn, located in Irvine, Kentucky. Police discovered that the room she was staying in, was allegedly rented by Epperson.
Upon police entering the room, they found an unresponsive woman, identified by the Winchester Police Department as Reacheal J. Dawson, who was pronounced dead on the scene. An investigation ensued and officers found the "same style capsules" that were identified in Morris' death.
Police executed a search warrant on Epperson's phone and found that he allegedly searched "overdose death information." The warrant read that while police were photographing the phone, they discovered a transaction on Amazon where the blank capsules were allegedly purchased.
When investigators asked him if he knew the women were dead, Epperson allegedly said that "he did not," the warrant stated. Police noted that Epperson did not admit to putting the methamphetamine inside the blank capsules.
Epperson has been charged with murder in connection to the death of Morris, KSP reported on Wednesday.
On Friday, Epperson plead not guilty to the murder charge, LEX 18 reported. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 15.
