(SALIDA, Colo.) — Suzanne Morphew, the Colorado mom who went missing on a bike ride in May 2020, died by homicide, according to an autopsy released Monday, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation said in a statement.
Her death was determined to have been caused by “Homicide by undetermined means in the setting of butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine intoxication,” according to the autopsy.
“These drugs are marketed as a compounded injectable chemical immobilizer for wildlife,” according to the autopsy from the El Paso County coroner.
There was no indication of trauma to her body at the time of her death, according to the report.
Barry Morphew, Suzanne’s husband, was charged with her murder in 2021, but those charged were dropped in April 2022 just before a trial was supposed to begin. No one has been arrested in the case since.
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“The Colorado Bureau of Investigation and our law enforcement partners understand and appreciate the public interest surrounding this case,” CBI Director Chris Schaefer said in a statement Monday. “The investigative team assembled to work this case continues to follow the evidence and only the evidence as we seek justice for Suzanne’s death.”
Her body was found in September 2023 while investigators were searching in an unrelated case. Her remains were found in Moffat, Colorado, in Saguache County, about 90 minutes south of where she lived in Chaffee County.
“For the past four years the Morphews have agonized over Suzanne’s disappearance,” the Morphew family said in a statement from their lawyer. “This included not only the pain of the loss of their wife and mother but also the false accusations and prosecution of Barry Morphew. The Morphews have prayed the authorities would remove their blinders and not only find Suzanne, but find the suspect responsible for her disappearance and murder. However, the Morphews are left with more questions than answers and a lack of justice for Suzanne, the family and the community.”
In addition to her clothes, the autopsy notes a “weathered bullet” was found with her remains.
Barry, and the couple’s adult daughters Macy and Mallory, also accused investigators of not telling them whether they tested the bullet or the clothing for any DNA evidence.
Barry and his daughters spoke to ABC News in May 2023 after they filed a lawsuit against prosecutors saying he was wrongfully charged.
“They’ve got tunnel vision and they looked at one person and they’ve got too much pride to say they’re wrong and look somewhere else,” Morphew said at the time. “I don’t have anything to worry about. I’ve done nothing wrong.”
ABC News’ Meredith Deliso, Morgan Winsor and Erielle Reshef contributed to this report.
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