Murder suspect Barry Morphew jailed in Colorado on warrant for bond violations

Barry Morphew, charged with murdering his wife Suzanne, was arrested in Boulder County after GPS data showed he drove to Denver airport in breach of bond conditions.

Murder suspect Morphew back in custody after GPS data reveals bond breach

Google News MT — Crime (en) reports that Barry Morphew, who faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of his wife Suzanne Morphew, was arrested Thursday night in unincorporated Boulder County and booked into the Boulder County Jail on an Alamosa County warrant for failure to comply.

Deputies from the Boulder County Sheriff's Office located Morphew at approximately 9:11 p.m. and took him into custody without incident.

The arrest followed a verified application filed earlier that day by prosecutors, asking the court to issue a warrant and modify Morphew's bond. In an order signed 3 September, a judge granted the request, setting bond at $3 million cash only with nationwide extradition. A bond hearing was scheduled for 8 September at 1:30 p.m., requiring Morphew to appear in person.

Prosecutors said GPS monitoring data showed Morphew left his home on 26 August under a work exception to his bond conditions. Instead of travelling to a workplace, the data indicated he drove to Denver International Airport. His attorneys told prosecutors it was possible he had gone there to pick up his daughter. Prosecutors argued the trip violated his release terms regardless of the reason, as he had only been authorised to leave home for work.

The filing described the airport visit as evidence of what prosecutors called an "extreme flight risk."

Video and GPS information provided by Morphew's monitoring company showed him leaving his home around 10 a.m., arriving at the airport around 11:45 a.m. and subsequently travelling near hotels and a mall before reaching the area of East 8th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard in Denver.

That same location is where Morphew was involved in a hit-and-run incident previously reported by CBS Colorado. Video footage showed a man later identified by the judge as Morphew following a collision near 8th and Colorado. The driver refused to provide identification or insurance information, offered one of the other drivers cash, and then left the scene. Morphew has not been charged in connection with that incident.

Court records show prosecutors were also reviewing his GPS data from that day as part of their investigation into whether he had violated bond conditions.

A separate order filed Friday directs authorities to physically transport Morphew from the Boulder County Jail to Alamosa for the bond hearing on Tuesday.

Morphew has pleaded not guilty to the charge of first-degree murder after deliberation and has denied killing his wife Suzanne Morphew.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)