Hey there all you True Crime fans! I’m your host, Amanda Russell, and this is Colorado Crime! If you’re new here, I cover cases from coast to coast with a special emphasis on cases that happen right here in colorful, crime filled, Colorado. If you’re returning, welcome! Thank you for being here with me today.
Before we get started today, I wanted to update you on last week's case. Barry Morphew filed a motion on May 26, 2022 to have his property returned to him that is still being held as evidence. He specifically stated he wanted the guns and cameras returned. This motion was denied Tuesday October 25th by a judge. Prosecutors believe these items can be used as evidence in the future. It feels like a small victory so I thought I’d update you.
Today will be our last case during Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Please remember that if you or someone you know is a victim of DV there’s help out there for you. For anonymous, confidential help available 24/7, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.
You will notice that none of these people accused or convicted of the murders they’ve committed are charged with DV. I am sure there's a good reason as to why they aren’t but I think they should be. I think if a domestic violence act leads to the murder of the intimate partner, DV should be included. Is murder enough to keep them in jail for the rest of their life? Sometimes! But how many women and men are afraid to speak up because nothing is being done? This doens’t seem to be helping. It also doesn’t seem like it would lead to very good tracking statistics either. We should be learning from mistakes made, not continuing to make them. Not much would change the sentencing or trial if DV was attached, I guess, ultimately, I feel like it’s a small justice for the family of the victim. The families lose a loved one and have to know they lost it because someone wanted control over their loved one. Maybe if DV was attached the accused would have even the smallest reminder that their selfishness is the reason they are there. That’s it! I’m off my soapbox for the day!
Thank you again for joining me on this journey. Let’s jump into Episode 4.
Our case today is a case that made national headlines back in 2018. It was the case of a missing mother who hadn’t been seen since Thanksgiving day… Know which one I’m talking about? This is the horrible, tragic, and devastating case of Kelsey Berreth.
Kelsey was a 29 year old mother and Flight Instructor. She grew up on a farm in Washington state with her parents and brother. She had always dreamed of becoming a commercial pilot. Kelsey loved caramel macchiatos, I’m a blonde flat white kinda gal myself, but She loved coffee, God, running, and being a mom. Kelsey and her fiance shared a 1 year old daughter and Kelsey’s life revolved around her. The last conversations Kelsey shared with her mom was about the cinnamon rolls she made for breakfast, what she planned on getting for her daughter for Christmas and also how excited she was to take her to pick out a Christmas tree.
Kelsey met her soon to be fiance, Patrick Frazee, online in 2016. Her move to Colorado followed quickly behind. So quickly in fact, she didn’t even have a job when she moved here. In October, 2017, Kelsey gave birth to their daughter, Kaylee. Kelsey started working for Doss Aviation in Pueblo where she was well liked, a hard worker, and very reliable. Kelsey and Patrick never lived together. Patrick lived on a ranch in Florissant, CO with his mother. The first time Kelsey stayed at the property Patrick’s mom accused Kelsey of being a hooker. I’d say it’s pretty fair to say that they didn’t have a very great relationship.
Kelsey was a full time mom and made the one hour one way commute from Woodland Park to Pueblo several times a week. While Kelsey was busy trying to keep up with the day to day demands of being a full time mom and employee, Patrick was spending his days working his farrier business and poisoning friends around him with lies about Kelsey. He would accuse her of being an alcoholic, abusing their daughter, and being an all around bad mom. He even went as far as to say Kelsey abandoned Kaylee and left her with him. A far different story from what pictures and interactions with Kelsey showed. Then, his problems seemed to disappear on November 22, 2018 when it appeared that Kelsey couldn’t handle the struggle anymore and when away to Idaho.
The last footage of Kelsey shows her at Safeway with her daughter on Thanksgiving day, buying groceries like the great mom she was. Neighbors of Kelsey caught Kelsey, Kaylee, and Patrick entering Kelsey’s condo around 1:30 pm and Patrick and Kaylee leaving alone around 4:30. If this sounds cut and dry, it would have been, except for the fact that Kelsey wasn’t reported missing until December 2, 2018.
Kelsey’s mom, who lived in another state, had reached out to Kelsey to no avail. Her mom, Cheryl, called Kelsey’s fiance and father of her grandchild, the person who would most likely know where she was, and was told that the two had broken up because Berreth wanted her own space. Cheryl was surprised to hear this as Kelsey hadn’t mentioned anything to her. Patrick went on to tell her that Kesley may have moved away but he didn't know. Again, this seemed odd to Cheryl. She then asked Patrick to go check on Kelsey and see if she or her car were at the condo. Patrick said he had to check his cows first but would after, even though “she wouldn't want to see him.” Cheryl just wanted to make sure her daughter was ok. After the awkward conversation with Patrick and the uneasy feeling became too much, Cheryl called the Woodland Park Police Department and reported Kelsey missing.
Police reached out to Patrick who stated he had received a message from her on November 25th but that the two had recently ended their relationship and Kelsey seemed despondent. Cell phone records would later show that text came from Gooding, Idaho. He claimed that Kelsey asked him to keep their daughter for a while because she was tired and stressed out. He also stated he was “worried about her.” Records also show that Kelsey’s phone sent a text message to her employer stating she would be out for the next week. A search of her condo was conducted but nothing indicated she was planning on leaving for any extended period of time. Her luggage, makeup and toothbrush were all accounted for. The cinnamon rolls Kelsey told her mom about were still sitting on the stove. The only things that seemed to be missing were her purse, her keys, her phone, and Kelsey herself. Toys that Cheryl had purchased for her granddaughter were also missing, which seemed odd because Cheryl had given those to Kaylee at her first birthday just a month prior.
On December 3rd, Police released information that she was missing, that she was last seen wearing a white tshirt, gray sweater, blue pants that could have been jeans, white shoes, and a brown purse and asked the public to send in any info regarding her disappearance. Cheryl and Kelsey’s brother flew from Idaho to Colorado to search for Kelsey. When Cheryl asked Patrick if he had gone looking for her he said he hadn’t. This was the last time Cheryl spoke to Patrick and I’m sure her suspensions were through the roof.
Cheryl and her husband went to Kelsey’s condo to see if they could find anything that might indicate to them where their daughter had gone. This is when Cheryl started to notice all the things that seemed wrong to her.
The thermostat was set to 72 degrees. Kelsey typically turned it down when she left
The trash hadn’t been taken out recently and the cans weren’t in their usual place
Cheryl also noticed a film on several areas in the condo from cleaning supplies, TAhe TV, the loveseat, the stove, and several other areas
Cheryl explained that as she walked through her daughter’s home she placed a picture of Kelsey and Patrick face down, frustrated that he wasn’t concerned.
The first prayer vigil is held in Tacoma, Washington, Kelsey’s hometown. The Woodland Park community would also hold a prayer vigil for Kelsey but Patrick didn’t attend. In an age where technology is at our fingertips and social media is so prevalent, it’s odd that Patrick never once posted on social media asking for help finding her. Is that because he already knew where she was?
On December 6th, while Kelsey’s family was staying in her condo while they searched for her, Kelsey’s brother, Clint, made a grizzly discovery. He found blood on the bottom of the toilet bowl and the inside door knob. They called the police and that was the last time they were allowed into her condo. Police searched the home using luminal, a spray that will light up under a black light if blood is present. When blood was discovered, investigators began focusing on Patrick. On December 15th, police talked to Cheryl about changing the locks on the condo so they could have sole control over who came and went.
Cadaver dogs were brought into Kelsey’s condo to search for her and hot on the bumper of her own car. Police spoke to neighbors and discovered that one neighbor had video footage of Kelsey’s front door and it was only located 16 feet away. This is one of those systems that notifies your cell phone of motion like Nest or Ring, something along those lines. This neighbor was out of town for Thanksgiving but stated during the trial that her camera’s activity was particularly high that day. It went off 6 or 7 times more than a normal day, but it was Thanksgiving so I’m sure there was more foot traffic in the area. During the investigation though, police found that the camera alerted motion 4 times on the 21st, the day before police think Kelsey was killed. On the 22nd, the camera alerted 27 instances of motion. The bulk of these occurred just before noon, around noon and again around 1:20 pm. The next wave of motion was detected between 4:20 PM and 4:30 PM. Between November 22nd and November 27th there were 27 file images captured. Of those 27, 11 were of Patrick. He was seen on camera at 1:24 PM on the 22nd with something in his hand. He is seen exiting Kelsey’s condo at 4:20 PM with Kaylee. About 10 minutes later he can be seen again but this time he has his back to the camera. This was the last image of Patrick captured at Kelsey’s condo. While reviewing the footage to see if Kelsey was seen, she was never captured again on this camera. The last known photo of Kelsey was captured on November 22nd at 1:23PM. Kelsey was carrying flowers and the baby carrier.
On December 11th, police released the footage of Kelsey and Kaylee entering Safeway. While police were pleading with the public for information, Patrick was visiting a local Verizon store. He told Kelsey’s mom that he was going there to ask if Kelsey had texted anyone since going missing but while he was there he was quoted as being, “very nervous, paranoid, and sketchy”. Patrick was trying to access an account but didn’t have the PIN. He stated he wanted to change it but was informed that he would need to contact corporate in order to complete his request which seemed to make Patrick even more nervous. At one point during the interaction Patrick told the employee, “Don’t believe what they’re saying about me”, which the employee felt was odd because he didn’t know what Patrick was accused of at the time. Patrick was concerned about people having access to his phone account. He then asked if information stored on a phone could still be accessed even after the phone was destroyed. After Patrick left the employee made the connection of who he was and what people were saying he had done. He then sent an email to the police around 6:30pm before leaving for the day. The employee was interviewed the next day.
During the trial, Patrick’s brother, Sean, took the stand. He is a Colorado Springs police officer and stated that he and Patrick hadn’t been close for the last two or three years. On Thanksgiving day, Sean and his family visited the ranch around 2:30PM. The only person there was their mother. The family ate dinner and waited for Patrick to return. Finally, around 4:30PM Patrick called the home’s landline to inform his family he would be late. Patrick arrived around 5 PM with Kaylee and began making their plates. Patrick went outside and attended to some animals. When he came back inside the family ate dessert and Sean and his family left. When asked Sean if he saw anything in the back of Patrick’s truck he informed the court that Patrick had parked out of sight so he had not seen the truck but that it would not be odd for Patrick to have a black box in the back. Police believe that Patrick placed Kelsey’s body in the black tote to transport it back to the ranch. Sean spoke with Patrick on the phone on Decmeber 3rd. Patrick mentioned that Kelsey’s grandma was sick and she may have gone to visit without telling anyone. Patrick then went on to tell his brother that Kelsey had alcohol issues and had sought help previously so maybe she was getting help again, she just didn’t tell anyone. Sean was also with Patrick on December 4th when police seized his phone.
A local furniture store captured images of Patrick at 1:19 PM. He appeared to be driving in the direction of Kelsey’s condo. A white dog carrier and a black box can be seen in the back of the truck. His vehicle appears on surveillance footage again at 4:34PM and the black tote is in a different position. The first photo showed the silver clasps on the tote. In the second image the clasps are not visible.
Special Agent Chales DeFrance who works for the Denver FBI Division took the stand during trial and discussed the search of Patrick’s home on December 14th and 15th, the 2 days spent processing Patrick’s truck, one day processing Kelsey’s condo and the follow up search done at Patrick’s home on the 21st. A folder was recovered from Patrick’s home with banking documents inside. Also inside were two handwritten documents inside of an envelope, Patrick’s alibi. Also inside the folder was a Walmart receipt that showed the time and date (the 22nd at 1:50 PM) that Patrick was buying his daughter formula. There was a receipt from Waste Management for a household waste dump of 70 yards with the date and time (Dec 1 @ 12:39 PM) as well as surveillance photos he requested from the credit union. The handwritten document read as follows, “Approximately 12:30, pick up Kaylee. Meet and exchange from parking area at her house. Approximately 12:45, Ent bank deposits. Approximately 1:30, leave Walmart. Drive 40 miles to check on feed, water cattle. Approximately 2:45, feed, water, check on cattle. Approximately 3:45, drive home for Thanksgiving dinner. Approximately 4:30, get home.”
Enter Krystal Kenney. Patrick’s phone records became a pivotal part of the investigation when it was discovered he called an Idaho number on the 22nd between 4:30 and 4:40 PM. Krystal and Patrick met in 2006 while Krystal was dating another man. Quickly on in their relationship, Krystal claimed to become pregnant with Patrick’s child and he asked her to terminate the pregnancy, A request she granted. The two were on and off for years. In December 2008 Patrick called and told Krystal he bought a dog that came with a puppy and he didn't want it so he offered it to her. When she came to pick up her new puppy, Patrick told her she needed to choose between him and her current boyfriend. She chose to stay in her current relationship. Patrick called in April 2009 demanding payment for the puppy. When Krystal didn’t send money he called again and threatened to come and kill the dog. Krystal got engaged and she didn’t hear from Patrick until October 2010, the day before her wedding. Patrick told her not to marry her fiance and he would come “rescue” her. It wasn’t until 2013 or 2014 that Patrick reached out via text message. They exchanged small talk but it wasn’t until 2015 that the two met in person. Krystal hadn’t seen Patrick since 2008 but after her and her husband began having marital issues she texted Patrick and he asked her to call. According to Krystal the two spoke daily. Patrick began encouraging Krystal to leave her husband. He even talked about wanting to start a family with her. In March of 2016, Krystal found out she was pregnant again with Patrick’s child. Krystal told Patrick and he again hinted at abortion. She said she cried but again went through with terminating another pregnancy. In May of 2016 Krystal filed for divorce from her husband. When she told Patrick and he didn’t respond the way she wanted they stopped speaking until October 2017, the same month and year his daughter Kaylee was born. Krystal claims that the two met up in March of 2018 but Patrick never mentioned Kelsey or their daughter. She returned in June 2018 to help Patrick fix his fence. At first Patrick didn’t answer calls but eventually did and the two met up. Later on, Krystal claims she went to dinner with her former boss and that’s who told her that Patrick had a daughter. It wasn't until August that Krystal confronted him about Kaylee. She handed him a bag of baby items and told him, “I know.” Patrick told her it wasn’t the time to talk about it. It wasn’t until September that Patrick opened up about Kaylee by simply sending a photo to Krystal of the little girl. This is when Patrick began telling Krystal that Kelsey was harming their daughter and he wanted to “take care” of Kelsey. Krystal would go on to testify in court, sealing Patrick’s fate, in order to receive a plea deal and hopefully avoid more serious charges. She pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with physical evidence and is now free on parole. Krystal told investigators, “I know what I was did was wrong, I’ll never be able to repay the Berreth family for that, I’ll never be able to repay Kelsey or her daughter. But I try every day to make amends for what I did’ and she would say ‘I don’t know what I can do other than that.”
In order to uncover what really took place on November 22, 2018, Special Agent Johnny Grusing interviewed Krystal. Side note, SA Grusing also assisted in interviewing Barry Morphew from last episode. Much of the information we have on that case is because of SA Grusing. Krystal would tell investigators that while she loved Patrick she was also afraid that if she didn’t help him he would hurt her and her daughter. Krystal told investigators that on the day of the murder Patrick called her and told her there was a “mess” at Kelsey’s home and she needed to “clean it up”. Any normal person would be shocked by this call and would call police. Krystal wasn’t and didn’t. Krystal knew this was coming. She was just waiting for the call. Patrick had solicited Krystal on three different occasions to kill Kelsey. The first time, he told Krystal to knock on Kelsey’s door and hand her coffee laced with sedatives; Krystal did deliver the coffee but not the drugs. The second time, he sent her to Kelsey’s house with a metal pipe and instructed her how to use it. Patrick told Krystal this was her chance to “redeem herself” for not succeeding the first time. Krystal showed up to the house but decided against the murder. She left the pipe in the driveway. She believes this conversation took place on October 15, 2018. The third time, he told Krystal to wait outside Kelsey’s home with a baseball bat and "swing away" at Kelsey; Krystal refused so Patrick took matters into his own hands and carried out the attack he had been planning for weeks. Krystal asked for immunity and then shared all the grizzly details.
On November 22nd Patrick showed up to Kelsey’s home. He went inside and began to play a game with Kelsey. He blindfolded her with a sweater and asked her to smell different candles to see if she could identify the scent. While she was blindfolded, Patrick savagely bludgeoned Kelsey with a baseball bat. This all occurred while Kaylee was playing in the next room. After Kelsey was dead, Patrick called Krystal to do her part. He made sure to tell her to “look for knocked out teeth.” Krystal spent 4 hours cleaning the crime scene. What couldn’t be cleaned- stuffed animals and pillows- she put into trash bags. 6 garage bags were filled with blood stained items. In court Krystal testified that she left little spots of blood around the home hoping investigators would find them. Maybe that’s true! Or maybe she did a shoddy job of cleaning up the mother of her lover’s child’s blood and didn’t want to go down for murder. From the stand, Krystal told the court, “Her mom and that little girl never needed to see what Patrick did to her and I didn’t know he was capable of that. I didn't think he was capable of what happened."
Krystal arrived at Kelsey’s Woodland Park condo on November 24th around 7AM. She opened the door and “saw a lot of blood”. She testified that there was blood on the living room floor as well as the walls. She found blood spatter on the east wall, on stuffed animals, an exercise ball, a chest, another wall and on the stove and dishwasher. By the time Krystal arrived the blood was dry. She used rags from Kelsey’s own bathroom. Those 6 garbage bags? Those also came from Kelsey’s home.
Krystal left Kelsey’s home and stopped by Sonic to grab a drink and lunch for Patrick and Kaylee. Patrick stored the black tote containing Kelsey’s body in a friend’s barn. When Krystal said she needed to return to Idaho and Patrick said they needed to get the tote. Patrick got into a tractor, grabbed the tote from the top of a haystack, and placed it in the back of his truck. The two drove back to his home in Florissant and Patrick burned Kelsey’s body and all 6 garbage bags after dousing them in gasoline. She went on to explain that Patrick wanted to fire to burn hotter so he added motor oil to the items. The burned evidence included Kaylee’s toys and Kelsey’s blood stained Bible. The two discussed the murder and Patrick told Krystal that he just “swung away and it was really hard.” He also said that NEXT TIME he would “stick to normal weapons.” NEXT TIME?! When Krystal was testifying she said, “He told me how hard it was to eat Thanksgiving dinner with my family when the mother of your child is in a tote in the back of your truck”, As the two continued to chat, Patrick told Krystal that Kelsey’s last words to him were, “please stop.” This speaks volumes to what time of person Kelsey was. Even as the father of her child brutally attacked her and she fought for her life, she still said please. Patrick then directed Krystal to take Kelsey’s phone, purse, and gun with her back to Idaho to make it look like Kelsey left. She sent several text messages from Kelsey’s phone as a diversion. Some to Patrick and one to Kelsey’s employer. Krystal testified that she later burned the phone to destroy it. She said she took Berreth’s gun to a friend, saying it was a suicidal aunt’s, then burned Berreth’s phone and purse at her home in Kimberly, Idaho. She testified that she put the ashes in a silver box, then into a plastic bag that she dumped in a trash bin on her way to work. After several calls from Patrick that Krystal said felt like “coaching”, Krystal began to really feel the pressure. On December 16, 2018, Krystal was met at her front door by FBI and CBI agents who told her they had a search warrant for buccal swabs. They told her they knew she lied and she agreed. She knew the jig was up. On December 20, 2018 Krystal told investigators everything. From start to finish. Everything she knew, investigators now knew and they would use all this to charge Patrick Frazee with Kelsey Berreth, the mother of his child’s, death.
Jurors spent 11 days listening to testimony from friends, family, law enforcement agents and investigators involved in the case. They deliberated for just three hours before delivering the verdict. On November 18. 2019, just shy of one year after he brutally murdered Kelsey Berreth, Patrick Frazee was found guilty on all counts: first-degree felony murder and three counts of solicitation to commit murder. He was sentenced an hour later to life without parole plus 156 years — the maximum possible sentence. Kaylee is now living with Kelsey’s mom and dad.
And that wraps up episode 4. What a wild case! Love makes people do crazy things. Currently Patrick Frazee is trying to appeal his charges and I will keep you updated as this progresses. I, for one, feel absolutely certain that Patrick is exactly where he should be. He already told Krystal he would do it differently next time. I hope he never gets the chance to even dream that life outside of prison is possible.
Thank you for tuning in this week. I’ll be back next week with a new case. New episodes are released every Friday at 10:30 am MST. Please follow me on instagram @coloradocrimepod for updates on next week's case as well as other true crime happenings. If you have any cases you would like me to cover, please send me an email at
[email protected]. I hope you have a beautiful day, wherever you are, and as always, stay safe!
