A Colorado man has been arrested in connection with his wife’s death, years after murder charges against him were dropped.
Suzanne Morphew went missing on Mother’s Day in 2020 while riding her bike, just days after telling her husband Barry Morphew she was “done” with their marriage, according to 9 News.
Suzanne, who had two daughters with Barry, went missing from their family home in Maysville, Colorado, more than three years before her remains were discovered in Saguache County, Colorado.
Barry was arrested in May 2021 and charged with murder after deliberation, tampering with physical evidence, and attempting to influence a public servant, according to court records.
He pleaded not guilty at the time.
However, in April 2022, the case was dismissed without prejudice, allowing prosecutors to charge him again in the future.
Prosecutors filed the motion to dismiss the case because they believed they were close to finding Suzanne’s body “in a remote and mountainous region nearby the Morphew residence,” Colorado authorities said at the time, according to PEOPLE.
On Friday, June 20, the Twelfth Judicial District Attorney’s Office announced in a press statement that a grand jury had indicted Barry on a first-degree murder charge. He was arrested in Arizona the same day, and the DA’s office will seek his extradition to Colorado.
It was not immediately clear what prompted the new charges. According to Twelfth Judicial District Attorney Anne Kelly, law enforcement continued to investigate even after Barry’s charges were dropped.
“Federal, state, and local law enforcement have never stopped working to bring Suzanne justice,” Kelly said in a statement. “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.”
