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Barry Morphew was indicted by a grand jury charging him with first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Suzanne Morphew.
The Twelfth Judicial District Attorney’s Office said in a statement to Fox News Digital that Morphew was arrested in Arizona following the indictment and will face extradition to Colorado. Morphew, 49, vanished during a bike ride on Mother’s Day in 2020.
Suzanne Morphew’s remains were found by the Colorado Bureau of Investigations in 2023 in Saguache County, located in the southwestern part of the state.
«Federal, State and local law enforcement have never stopped working toward justice for Suzanne.» said Twelfth Judicial District Attorney Anne Kelly. «The Twelfth Judicial District Attorney’s Office stands in solidarity with Suzanne’s family and the citizens of Chaffee and Saguache Counties in pursuing the Grand Jury’s indictment.»
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Barry and Suzanne Morphew. (AP)
The Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release that Barry Morphew has a $3,000,000.00 bond.
Barry Morphew (R) and Suzanne Morphew (L). Barry Morphew was booked into the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office on Friday. (Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office and Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
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According to a copy of the grand jury indictment, many of Suzanne Morphew’s bones were «significantly bleached» when they were found in 2024. Prosecutors say it’s «unlikely» that her body decomposed to a skeleton at the location she was found.
The chemicals that comprise Butorphanol, Azaperone and Medetomidine (BAM) were found inside Suzanne Morphew’s body, prosecutors said. According to the indictment, Barry Morphew used «BAM» as a tranquilizer to sedate and transport deer on his deer farm.
At a press conference on Friday evening, District Attorney Anne Kelly said she partnered with several law enforcement agencies, including the FBI.
«Law enforcement, the Chaffee County community, and Colorado as a whole has never stopped fighting for justice for Suzanne. Cold case homicides are tremendously difficult. They’re difficult for the families of the victims and the communities who wait patiently for answers. While it may seem at times that the world forgets about these victims, I can assure you that my law enforcement partners and Colorado’s law enforcement community do not forget,» Kelly said.
Kelly said Barry Morphew was arrested in the Phoeniz, Arizona area and will be extradited to Colorado. She said it’s unknown why he was in the Phoenix area.
Morphew’s bike was found on the same day she went missing on Mother’s Day in 2020 along a ravine which ran along Highway 50 and County Road 225 in Chaffee County. At the time, Barry was working in Broomfield, Colorado.
Text messages from the couple suggest the two were both having affairs before Suzanne Morphew went missing.
Four days before she disappeared, Suzanne Morphew sent her husband a text that said she was «done.»
«I could care less what you’re up to and have been for years,» she said, adding they need to «civilly» figure things out.
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In this still image from video, Barry Morphew, center, appears in court in Salida, Colo., Thursday, May 6, 2021. Morphew was arrested on Wednesday, May 5, in connection with the disappearance of his wife, Suzanne Morphew, who was last seen a year ago on Mother’s Day, May 10, 2020. (KUSA via AP, Pool) (KUSA via AP, Pool)
Barry Morphew filed a $15 million lawsuit in 2023 against prosecutors and investigators, alleging they violated his constitutional rights.
«Barry was the most scrutinized, dissected, surveilled individual, minute by minute, hour by hour, using law enforcement cameras posted by his home, phone taps and GPS devices placed on his car – all during the timeframe of her disappearance and the years following,» Iris Eytan, Barry Morphew’s lawyer, said at the time.
Fox News’ Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
