The investigation into Suzanne Morphew’s disappearance appeared to be at a standstill following the dismissal of Barry Morphew’s murder charge in 2022. That changed when investigators found a rare chemical compound inside her body, which prosecutors say ties Barry Morphew directly to her death.

Barry Morphew was arrested near Phoenix, Arizona on June 20 following a grand jury indictment for allegedly killing his wife, 49-year-old Suzanne Morphew, a mother of two, who vanished on Mother’s Day in 2020. The Morphews lived near Salida, Colorado. Morphew waived an extradition hearing and is now at the Alamosa County Jail in Colorado.

Just months after murder charges against Barry Morphew were dismissed in 2022 due to prosecutorial misconduct, investigators found Suzanne Morphew’s body in September 2023 while searching in Saguache County, located in the southwestern part of the state.

According to the June 20 grand jury indictment charging Barry Morphew with first-degree-murder after deliberation, many of Suzanne Morphew’s bones were found “significantly bleached” when her remains were found in 2023. 

“I think prosecutors absolutely have an uphill battle and any sort of celebration for justice would be premature. I think that, you know, the case is largely circumstantial,” Faddis said. “And on top of that, the prosecution has been handcuffed by the court based on their prior prosecutorial misconduct. And so they are not going to be able to call many of the experts who would be beneficial to proving the case. So for all of those reasons this is by no means a slam dunk and, in fact, I think on the balance it’s actually going to be very difficult to prove.”