LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — The man wanted for murder in a former missing person case has turned himself in.
On Tuesday the Fayette County Grand Jury indicted 45-year-old Willow Bruce Cherry for the murder of Peter Lian. Cherry is Lian’s brother-in-law, according to the criminal complaint.
Just after 1 p.m. on Feb. 19, 2018, Lexington Police responded to the 100 block of North Mount Tabor Road reference the report of a missing adult, 35-year-old Lian.
The pursuant investigation led detectives to believe that Lian was dead as the result of an altercation he had with Willow. Lian’s body has not been located.
The criminal complaint says that Cherry showed up at Lian’s house and they got into a fight. It states that Lian’s wife saw her brother, Cherry, “on top of Peter beating him”, and she was scared. It says she left with her toddler and came back later, where she heard her husband locked in the bedroom groaning and calling for help. She was told by Cherry and Cherry’s wife, Misty, not to call 9-1-1, according to the criminal complaint. The complaint said she was scared and later left again with her daughter to stay at her father’s. When she hadn’t heard from Peter in three days, she called the police.
Lian’s wife later saw blood on the carpet and Cherry was seen by a different family member with Lian’s car during that period, according to the criminal complaint. The complaint said he asked that relative for help cleaning blood from the vehicle. The complaint said that the relative refused and also noticed that Cherry had Lian’s cell phone.
Detectives say they found blood in a storage unit in the back of the vehicle.
Investigators were searching for Cherry. 24 hours after police released his photo, he turned himself in.
