Barry Morphew’s ‘friendship with cops’ could have ‘influenced probe into missing wife’

The husband of a missing mom in small-town Colorado had been ‘friendly’ with local cops prior to his wife’s disappearance, an insider has claimed – suggesting the friendship is what spurred officers to mishandle their investigation in the first place.

Speaking about the case surrounding still-lost Suzanne Morphew, the source with knowledge on the probe into her death painted a grim picture as to why her husband, 55-year-old Barry Morphew, was acquitted last year.

At that point, the owner of a lucrative Denver landscaping business had been the sole suspect in the case, arrested for murder almost a year to the day after Suzanne, 49, suddenly vanished while on a bike ride in their native Salida.

The mom-of-two’s disappearance happened on Mother’s Day 2020, and sparked a national furor for the better part of year after her body was never found. 

The outcry looked to alleviate with Morphew’s arrest in May 2021, but unraveled last year when prosecutors dropped all charges against the Salida dad. The decision, delivered by a local judge, came after the local district attorney’s office was sensationally over violations during discovery.

Speaking about the case surrounding still-lost Suzanne, a source with knowledge on the probe  painted a grim picture as to why 55-year-old Barry was acquitted – claiming he had been ‘friendly’ with local cops prior to his wife’s disappearance, and was part of a potential coverup

The insider went on to add that ‘Suzanne was [also] friends with some of the wives’ of officers on the force, including Sheriff John Spezze (seen here). The retired Denver cop has declined to comment on his office’s now-three-year-long probe, which has failed to garner a conviction

Speaking to The Sun Sunday, the insider – as well as an unnamed resident of the town of 5,800 – laid blame on sheriffs for the probe falling apart, claiming the Chaffee County force was part of a conspiracy to purposely ‘botch’ the investigation.

‘They botched the investigation in the first few days by failing to treat that home as a crime scene,’ said the tipster, who spoke under the condition of anonymity. 

That said, the source did confide that he used to work in local law enforcement, during which time he witnessed a chummy dynamic between the town’s police force and Morphew – a volunteer at Chaffee County’s fire house.  

‘I know Barry was friendly with a lot of people in the sheriff’s department through his work volunteering at the local fire department,’ the insider said, less than three weeks after Mophew filed a federal lawsuit against Chaffee County Sheriff’s office for ‘irreparably’ tarnishing his ‘name and reputation’ after his arrest in 2021.

The insider went on to add that ‘Suzanne was [also] friends with some of the wives’ of officers on the force, including Sheriff John Spezze. 

Spezze, 62, has headed the force since 2015, after retiring from the city of Denver’s Police Department, where he worked as an officer for 27 years.

He, along with a cohort of local officials, are named in the sensational civil lawsuit filed by Mophew over his arrest – and subsequent five months of incarceration.

In the 185-page filing – which demands $15million in damages – accused Spezze and figures such as Undersheriff Andy Rohrich, and 17th Judicial District Attorney Linda Stanley of conspiring to withhold and fabricate evidence for a crime he ‘didn’t commit.’

Sheriff Spezze has since declined to comment on the case and all matters surrounding it, saying only that his department’s probe – three years later – remains ‘active and ongoing.’

Morphew was arrested last May before being released on bond and ordered to wear an ankle monitor as a condition of his release

In comments made to The Sun, the source said Spezze’s drawn out probe has been by design – because of the Morphew’s previous good standing with the department.

‘They were all swimming in the same social circles,’ the insider said of the couple, who have two daughters. ‘That’s why it took them so long to charge him in the first place.’

Several other locals in the tight-knight community a two hours’ drive east from Colorado Springs agreed with the insiders’ assessment that members of Spezze’s department purposely mishandled their probe into Suzanne’s disappearance.

Meanwhile, Morphew is still considered a suspect in the case, according to Prosecutor Mark Hurlbert – who is also named in the sensational civil lawsuit filed a few weeks ago.