Suspect in toddler's killing in Augusta County claimed child 'liked to be smacked'
STAUNTON — When Khaleesi Cuthriell went to live with Travis Brown and Candi Jo Royer in October 2020, the toddler had thick hair, was in good health and her cheeks still carried hints of baby fat.
"She was so beautiful," said Augusta County Commonwealth's Attorney Tim Martin during his opening statement Monday on the first day of Brown's murder trial.
But less than three months after moving in, evidence showed most of her pale body was already covered in bruises, scrapes and burns. Large swaths of hair were also missing from the 3-year-old. Video of Khaleesi taken Jan. 12, 2021, perhaps her last day alive, according to Martin, showed a frightened and confused child being verbally berated while made to stand naked in a dry bathtub in her own feces.
Brown, 31, and Royer, 43, both face murder charges in the toddler's killing. Her body has never been found.
About 30 witnesses are expected to be called for the week-long trial in Augusta County Circuit Court.
In 2020, Khaleesi's mother, Amanda Arey, was struggling with drug use. After violating her probation, she was headed back to jail and wanted to hand her daughter over to a family member. But Child Protective Services in Augusta County, a division of Shenandoah Valley Social Services, stepped in and blocked the move, testimony showed. Arey then opted for Royer, who has a young daughter with Brown who is slightly older than Khaleesi. The couple lived together on Cattle Scales Road in Augusta County.
Evidence showed that a police officer and a CPS employee took Khaleesi over to Royer and Brown's home just outside of Waynesboro in October 2020. At the time, Royer was on home electronic monitoring for an unspecified criminal offense. After the CPS employee left, she never went back to the residence on Cattle Scales Road, according to her testimony. Within weeks, Khaleesi was referring to Brown and Royer as "Mommy and Daddy," evidence showed.
While behind bars at Middle River Regional Jail, Arey testified Monday she spoke to Khaleesi about every two weeks by phone until contact became infrequent and then stopped altogether. "She was my whole world," Arey said. "My best friend."
Arey said she was given a number of excuses as to why she couldn't speak with Khaleesi when she contacted Brown and Royer, such as the pandemic or that Khaleesi was sick. But most times her calls went unanswered. Arey's relatives then provided Royer and Brown with a phone in a failed effort to facilitate further communications, according to testimony.
Arey said she wrote a letter to CPS in an effort to have them do a welfare check on Khaleesi, but said she never got a response from the government agency. "No one ever contacted me back," she testified.
In her last phone call from jail, which was played in court, Arey told Khaleesi, "I love you! I can't wait to see you. Mommy misses you."
By September 2021, Arey told a jail officer she'd lost contact with her child, and the Augusta County Sheriff's Office immediately started an investigation. That same month Brown and Royer were captured at a Knights Inn motel in South Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and Augusta County Sheriff Donald Smith announced Khaleesi was dead.
Martin said investigators, who served more than four dozen search warrants, combed through nearly 50,000 photos, videos and communications connected to Brown and Royer. In one video, Royer is filming the toddler when she's heard telling the somber child "nobody likes you, Khaleesi." In another video where Khaleesi is shown in the dry bathtub, her thin body covered in bruises while she stands in her own feces, Royer repeatedly screams at her. After Royer sent Brown the same video, hours later he responded, "What if our girl looked like that hahahahahah."
Photos showed Khaleesi had a battered and bloody face, and also injuries to her feet several weeks after arriving at the couple's home. In another photo, the toddler was shown slumped over a toilet.
Following his arrest in Pennsylvania, when asked if he knew where Khaleesi was, Brown told two Augusta County investigators that a CPS employee had picked her up in a state car, but said he didn't actually witness it. "It was such a relief," he said on the video that was played in court.
Brown made a number of outlandish claims during questioning, telling investigators the toddler "liked to be smacked" and that she acted like she was "possessed." Brown also claimed he woke up one night to grab a bite to eat from the kitchen when he spotted Khaleesi choking his daughter. He also claimed she was sexually aware, told investigators she rubbed her genitals, was prone to falling, and said the toddler was suicidal.
Monday was the first day of a scheduled five-day trial, and the defense has yet to call any witnesses. But during his opening remarks, defense attorney Dana Cormier made it clear who he feels killed Khaleesi.
"In October, Candi Royer will answer for what she has done," Cormier said, alluding to her scheduled trial.
Though they were arrested together, texts between Brown and Royer showed some friction, Martin noted during his opening statement. In one exchange, Royer says to Brown, "You know what you did Travis." Brown responds, "Just know the gunshot your [sic] about to hear is a bullet going through my head."
In another text exchange, Royer tells Brown, "Unless you want a murder charge id [sic] shut up." Brown replies, "Trust me I took care of my back."
The trial will resume Tuesday at 9 a.m. in Augusta County Circuit Court. Brown is charged with aggravated murder, murder and child abuse. Five other previous charges went by the wayside minutes before the trial started.
Brad Zinn is the cops, courts and breaking news reporter at The News Leader. Have a news tip? Or something that needs investigating? You can email reporter Brad Zinn (he/him) at bzinn@newsleader.com. You can also follow him on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Travis Brown's murder trial in Augusta County is underway
