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In the wake of Robert Redford’s death, the FBI is bringing renewed attention to a murder that once drew headlines for its connection to the legendary actor.
In 1983, Redford was in the midst of filming The Natural when his daughter Shauna Redford’s college boyfriend Sid Wells was gunned down in his Boulder, Colorado apartment.
The suspect in the shocking murder has never been caught, prompting the FBI’s Denver Field Office to issue a new plea for information about the wanted man.
For years, Redford sought justice for Wells, not only stopping production on The Natural to attend his funeral but also calling Boulder’s District Attorney decades later to thank him for continuing to pursue the case.
How is murder victim Sid Wells linked to Robert Redford?
At the time of the murder, Redford’s daughter and Wells, an aspiring journalist, were both students at the University of Colorado Boulder.
The relationship took a tragic turn on August 1, 1983, when police officers responded to an incident at Wells’ apartment complex and, according to the FBI, found the 22-year-old “lying on the living room floor, with a gunshot wound to his head.”
Suspicion soon fell to Wells’ roommate Thayne Smika, who police believed owed Wells $300 for rent, revealing a possible motive for the deadly shooting, per KUSA.
Neighbors at the apartment complex told police they heard a loud noise less than an hour before the body was discovered by Wells’ brother, who had just returned from a camping trip, according to an arrest warrant in the case obtained by People.
Why was Thayne Smika a suspect in Sid Wells’ death?
Once inside the apartment, police discovered a note Smika left behind, saying that he’d gone home to visit his parents and would be back in a few days.
When officers went to the home to inform him of Wells’ death, he told police that was there to get a perm and do his laundry. Authorities found that story suspicious, however, because they learned he’d had a hair appointment one week earlier. The apartment complex where he lived also had its own laundry facilities, according to the warrant.
Smika pointed to another possible suspect, who he alleged had been stealing cocaine from Wells, police said. However, that man denied having any involvement in the crime and had a firm alibi.
Police also spoke to Smika’s friends who described him as the one with a drug habit. At the time of the murder, they said he was struggling with financial issues and had allegedly been known to carry out thefts and scams, according to the warrant.
One of the friends interviewed also alleged that Smika had confessed to the murder during a night of drinking, authorities said.
Where is Thayne Smika today?
Smika was arrested, but the district attorney dropped the charges after concluding there was not enough evidence to tie him to the case.
Smika disappeared not long after. In 1986, his car was found abandoned in Beverly Hills, California, with a stolen license plate on it, per the FBI, but his current whereabouts remain unknown.
A federal warrant for his arrest was issued in connection to the crime on Dec. 13, 2010 as part of a renewed effort to solve the case.
Former Boulder County District Attorney Stan Garnett told KUSA that Redford had personally called him to thank him for continuing to investigate the case.
According to Garnett, “We had a brief, but very cordial conversation in which he thanked me and the Boulder Police and my office for continuing to pay attention to the case and work towards getting a warrant eventually.”
In the wake of the tragedy, Redford not only attended the funeral, but also paid for private security to protect Wells’ family as police tried to piece together the crime.
“I certainly got the impression, both from my understanding of the case and from that conversation and some other things, that this was more than just a casual dating relationship, that Mr. Wells and Robert Redford’s daughter were pretty serious about each other,” Garnett said. “I thought [the call] was a positive reflection of Robert Redford’s concern about his daughter and about this young man who’d lost his life very tragically.”
Redford died Sept. 16, 2025. He was 89 years old. The next day, the FBI’s Denver Field office posted the new plea for information on Smika’s whereabouts on X. The FBI is offering a $10,000 reward for any information leading to his current whereabouts.
