Barry Morphew arrested in Arizona on Colorado indictment for murdering his wife

GILBERT, Ariz. — A Colorado murder case that has captivated national attention for years took a dramatic turn this week with an arrest in Arizona.

Barry Morphew, the man previously accused of killing his wife, Suzanne Morphew, was arrested in Gilbert Friday following a new grand jury indictment issued in Alamosa County, Colorado. Arizona Department of Public Safety officers acted swiftly, taking Morphew into custody within minutes of the indictment being issued, prosecutors in Colorado said.

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Morphew was booked into the Maricopa County Jail, where he awaits possible extradition back to Colorado to face a first-degree murder charge.

12News was the only Valley television station to capture video of Morphew arriving at the jail.

Suzanne Morphew disappeared on Mother’s Day in 2020 from her home in Salida, Colorado. Although Barry Morphew was charged in connection with her disappearance, the case—lacking a body—was dismissed by a judge in 2022 after the case was rife with prosecutorial misconduct.

Court records and property filings show that after the charges were dropped, Morphew relocated to Arizona, living in a trailer at Stardust Trailer Park in Cave Creek. The full extent of his ties to the Valley remains unclear. Arizona DPS would not provide an address where he was taken into custody in Gilbert.

The investigation took a significant turn in September 2023 when Suzanne Morphew’s remains were discovered in a remote area of southern Colorado. A subsequent toxicology report reportedly provided new evidence linking Barry Morphew to the crime, ultimately leading to the grand jury indictment.

Colorado prosecutors did not elaborate on why Morphew was in Gilbert at the time of his arrest but praised the swift cooperation between Arizona and Colorado law enforcement agencies.

“We have been working very, very hard to make sure that we run down anything we can with respect to this investigation,” Anne Kelly, 12th Judicial District Attorney, said. “Our law enforcement officers have never given up.”

Morphew is expected to appear before a judge in Maricopa County this weekend, where he could challenge extradition, potentially delaying his return to Colorado.

Attempts to contact Morphew’s daughters, who have remained supportive of him throughout the six-year ordeal, have been unsuccessful.

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