Mum beaten to death with baseball bat

Kelsey Berreth was unaware that there had been three attempts to kill her, until it was too late

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Kelsey Berreth grew up on a farm, driving tractors and helping with the harvest. She was a country girl at heart, who went on to get her pilot's licence and start a career as a flying instructor.

When Kelsey met Colorado rancher Patrick Frazee online in 2016, there was an instant connection. Frazee lived on a 35-acre ranch, where he had horses, donkeys and cattle dogs. With Kelsey, 29, living over 1,000 miles away in Washington state, they started a long-distance relationship, but she soon moved to Colorado and got her own place about 20 miles from Frazee.

In October 2017, the couple had a baby girl and got engaged. Kelsey continued to teach flying alongside caring for her daughter. But on 22 November 2018, Thanksgiving Day, her family struggled to get hold of her and her mother Cheryl Berreth reported her missing.

Frazee, then 33, told the police that Kelsey had wanted to end their relationship. He said she'd left the baby with him on Thanksgiving Day and they’d agreed that, moving forward, they'd equally share custody. Frazee insinuated that Kelsey was depressed, but her family strongly denied it and Cheryl insisted her daughter hadn't mentioned the breakup on Thanksgiving morning when they’d last spoken.

An investigation began and the police found that Kelsey had been shopping for dinner. She’d sent Frazee a text saying, “I bought some sweet potatoes in case you wanted sweet potato casserole.” Why would she be buying ingredients for a family meal if they had broken up?

Frazee said he hadn't seen Kelsey since 22 November, when he'd driven their daughter to his house without Kelsey, but phone records showed that her phone had travelled to Frazee’s home. Records also showed the pair exchanged texts in the following days.

In one message, Kelsey told Frazee she was going running. In another, she was about to “jump in the shower”.