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Patrick Frazee Said Missing Kelsey Berreth Was 'Never Coming Back,' Woman Testifies
Patrick Frazee is currently standing trial for Kelsey Berreth's murder, even though her body has yet to be found.
A customer of Patrick Frazee’s horseshoeing business told jurors that Frazee made an ominous comment weeks after he allegedly killed fiancée Kelsey Berreth.
That customer, Margaret Luce, testified Tuesday, November 12 during the third week of Frazee's murder trial that Frazee visited her home on Dec. 20 to trim her horses’ hooves. Luce told the court she said to Frazee that Berreth — who had been missing for two weeks at that point — might reappear.
“And he said, ‘Oh, she’s never coming back,'” Luce testified, according to The Denver Post.
Prosecutors say Frazee, 33, knew that to be true because Frazee allegedly brutally beat Berreth, 29, to death on Thanksgiving Day before burning her body to hide it from police.
Luce also told jurors that Frazee had told her earlier in the fall that he didn't want to raise his daughter with Berreth and that he wanted her "gone."
“He said he just wants her gone so he can raise Kaylee with someone else,” Luce said, the local outlet reports.
A total of 13 witnesses testified Tuesday, including law enforcement officers who collected pieces of burned phones from a fire pit near a key witness’ home and a friend of Frazee who testified Frazee had told him he had “figured out a way” to kill Berreth, according to a separate report from The Denver Post.
A crime scene analyst also led jurors through the evidence found in Berreth's apartment — tiny, tiny flecks of blood were discovered as well as wipe marks that seem to show someone had recently cleaned the apartment.
The testimony is meant to help bolster the account of Frazee's mistress, Krystal Lee Kenney, who testified earlier this month that Frazee told her he killed Berreth and had her help him destroy evidence at the scene of the killing.
Under an agreement with prosecutors, Kenney agreed to plead guilty to tampering with evidence in the case in exchange for her testimony. She’s now facing a maximum of three years in prison.
A fire investigator testified that burned plastic residue found on Frazee’s ranch next to a spot of oily dirt was consistent with what would be left by a body being burned inside a plastic tote — matching up with what Kenney had told police.
The defense has argued that Kenney is not a reliable witness as she could have faced life behind bars if she was charged with every crime she allegedly committed.
Frazee is charged with first-degree murder, solicitation to commit first-degree murder, and tampering with a deceased human body. He faces life in prison without parole if convicted.
Berreth's body has never been found.
The trial is expected to conclude on Nov. 22.
