Fiance of Colorado mom Kelsey Berreth is accused of first-degree murder, police say

The fiance of Kelsey Berreth, a Colorado mom last seen on Thanksgiving Day, has been arrested and accused of first-degree murder, authorities announced Friday.

Patrick Frazee was arrested shortly after 7 a.m. in Florissant, Colorado, and is being held in the Teller County jail, Woodland Park Police Chief Miles De Young said at a press conference livestreamed by CBS 4 in Denver.

Berreth’s body has not been found, he said. But investigators found enough evidence to implicate Frazee in the crime, he said.

“As you can tell, sadly, we do not believe that Kelsey is alive,” he said, adding that people can expect to see an investigation, which has involved a team of local authorities and the FBI, continue.

De Young said investigators have evidence that suggests she was killed at her home.

Berreth and Frazee’s 1-year-old daughter “is in protective custody and will be reunited with Kelsey’s family,” De Young said. “I cannot stress enough that this is a difficult time for Kelsey’s family. They are not providing interviews, period. Please respect the family’s request.”

District Attorney Dan May said Frazee has also been charged with solicitation of first-degree murder, which he explained as trying to get someone else to commit a crime. He would not say whether others would be charged in the case but that formal charges should be filed within the next 10 days. An arraignment date has not been set, he said.

Affidavits in the case have been sealed, and May said he expects them to remain so until investigators say releasing information won’t jeopardize their work. “We are not going to try this case in the press,” he said.

Police had visited property owned by Frazee several times in recent days, according to KRDO radio station in Colorado Springs.

Last week, Frazee’s attorney, Jeremy Loew, said his client “continues to cooperate with law enforcement in the missing person investigation,” ABC reported.

Berreth’s case began grabbing national headlines two weeks ago after her mother made an emotional plea to the public to help find her.

“Kelsey, we just want you home. Call us if you can. We won’t quit looking,” Cheryl Berreth said at a press conference in Woodland Park. The event was livestreamed on Facebook by KKTV.

“She’s not the kind that runs off. This is completely out of character,” Cheryl Berreth said.

At that press conference, De Young revealed the timeline surrounding Berreth’s disappearance, McClatchy reported on Dec. 10.

He said Cheryl Berreth reported her daughter missing at 12:37 p.m. MT on Dec. 2.

Berreth’s employer — Doss Aviation in Pueblo — told police that she texted the company from her phone on Nov. 25 saying she would not be at work the following week, De Young said, according to McClatchy’s reporting.

When police conducted a “community caretaker search” of Berreth’s home on Dec. 2, they found her suitcases, makeup and vehicles there, ABC News reported.

When police contacted Frazee, he told them he hadn’t heard from Berreth since Nov. 25 when she sent him a text, De Young said at the press conference.

Frazee told police he hadn’t seen Berreth since Nov. 22 when “they exchanged” their daughter, said De Young, who told a reporter they’d have to ask Frazee why he didn’t attend the press conference.

De Young said at the time that Frazee was being “cooperative” with police, according to McClatchy.

Surveillance video from the Safeway showed Berreth there with her daughter at about 12:27 p.m. on Nov. 22, De Young said. “That’s the last time Kelsey was seen,” he said.

Several law enforcement agencies had searched Frazee’s 35-acre propety in Florissant, Colorado, before he was arrested, KOAA in Colorado Springs reported.

At a news conference in Florissant, De Young “said he considered Berreth’s disappearance suspicious” but “stopped short of naming Frazee as a suspect or a person of interest,” KOAA reported.

A Facebook page named “Missing Mother - Kelsey Berreth” has been set up to call attention to the case.

This story was originally published December 21, 2018 at 10:55 AM with the headline "Fiance of Colorado mom Kelsey Berreth is accused of first-degree murder, police say."