The Murder of Patricia Richmond
For this case I watched another episode of Murder in the Heartland, which is probably one of my favorite shows on Discovery Plus. It’s season 3 episode 3, titled ‘Beautiful Mess.’
A 23 year old woman is found dead by her future in-laws.
Background
Patricia ‘Trish’ Richmond
Patricia and Keith West
Patricia or Trish as everyone called her was a 23 year old woman who lived in the small town of Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Trish lived with her fiancee Keith West, and his parents Russell and Amy. This family was well-known to this small ski town.
Trish was very close to her family. They moved to Colorado when she was in seventh grade, and her sister in fourth grade. After her parents separated in 2011, her sister and mom moved back to Ohio, but Trish stayed behind because she was in school. Trish was very excited about her future with Keith, and was in the middle of wedding planning when this happened.
The Murder
On June 29, 2015, around 7pm, a 911 call came into the Routt County police. The call was from Russell West, and he said he had just found his son’s fiancee lying face down, not breathing. Russell also mentioned that her hands had been tied behind her back.
When detectives Doug Sherar and Tom Munden arrived, the home was already roped off with crime scene tape. They were met by Russell and Amy West, and had to ask them to remove their dogs from the home.
There was no sign of forced entry, but when the police walked into the bedroom where Trish was, they noticed the room was in disarray. Trish was lying on the bed, face down with her hands tied. A belt was found near her body, which would later be revealed to be one of the items that was used to tie her hands.
The police believed that Trish had to have known her killer because there was no forced entry and the family owned several dogs that were described as very protective.
The In-Laws
At around 1:50am, the police asked Russell and Amy to come down to the police station to answer questions.
The police asked Amy to go over what she did that day. She said had gotten home from work before Russell, and noticed that the kitchen door was open, and that the dogs were near the garage.
Russell was in a nearby interview room, and was asked the same questions. He said Amy asked him where Trish was. She was nowhere to be found, but her phone and wallet were lying around. Amy said she looked in the bedroom, but didn’t see anything because the lights were off. She mentioned that the room was a mess, and Russell went to check. He said he saw her feet sticking out, and saw her lying face down when he got closer. He then called 911.
The police asked Russell if anything was missing from the house, and he said yes, there were several guns missing. They asked him where he and Amy were all day, and he said they were at work at their mechanic shop. Russell said the only time Amy left was to go to the bank. The police asked him if Amy would kill Trish, and he said no.
Amy confirmed her husband’s story. While the police were questioning Amy, they asked her about the fresh scratches she had on her arm. Amy said she had gotten them from removing the dogs from the home. Amy and Russell were both asked to provide DNA samples, and they agreed.
The Fiancee
The police also wanted to talk to Keith. When they saw him at the scene, he appeared very emotional, but they needed to rule him out.
The police asked Keith’s parents if he and Trish ever fought. They said yes, but the fights were just brief and never physical. Amy mentioned that one of their biggest fights happened because Trish had a brief relationship with a man named Randall Herman while she and Keith were on a break.
The police asked Keith where he was that day. Keith said he had been at work from about 4-4:30am-6pm. Keith did mention that he and Trish had gotten into a brief argument the night before about their wedding invites being sent out late.
During the investigation, the police noticed that Keith had a small amount of blood on his fingers. They asked him what that was from, and he said it was probably a mosquito bite. They asked him if his DNA would be found on Trish, and he said yes, because he kisses her everyday.
The police asked Keith who else would have access to the house, and he said his cousin Cole Pollard. The police asked what Cole’s relationship was like with him and Trish. Keith said they had brief arguments, but that he and Cole were as close as brothers. He didn’t think Cole would do this, and mentioned that Randall Herman had more of a motive to do it.
The Ex-Boyfriend
Trish and Randall had a brief relationship while she was on a break with Keith. Trish’s friends were interviewed, and they said it was a weird relationship that last about a month. However, Randall said that the relationship lasted close to 7 months, and that he even proposed to Trish, but she decided to go back to Keith.
Trish’s friends said that Randall was very bitter, and Keith said that he had sent her derogatory text messages. The police also discovered that Randall had posted several messages about Trish and the West family on Facebook, talking about how he would kill the family dogs.
The police looked into Randall, and were able to eliminate him. He had been at work during the time of the murder. Randall was briefly interviewed in this episode, and he appeared emotional about Trish’s death. Maybe he was upset about the breakup, but he obviously didn’t kill her.
The Manhunt
About 24 hours into the investigation, the police received a tip from a woman named Megan. She worked at the post office, and said that she saw Trish and a younger man around 2pm on the day of the murder. Megan said the two of them came in to get their mail and left.
Megan said that the man was in his 20’s with sandy blonde hair, and that everything appeared normal. She said she recognized the man, but didn’t know his name.
Another tip came in the same day from one of the West’s neighbors. The neighbor said they saw a white truck in the West’s driveway, and that it was there for awhile. The neighbor had seen the truck in the neighborhood, but thought it was suspicious.
It was then that the police knew who their killer was. In his interview, Keith had mentioned that his cousin Cole drove a white truck with large tires and a loud exhaust.
The police called Cole’s grandparents, who he lived them, and they said they hadn’t seen him in a few days. A BOLO (be on the lookout) was put out for Cole’s truck.
Hours later, a Colorado Parks and Wildlife employee found Cole’s car at Trappers Lake. The police knew that Cole was armed, and a SWAT team was brought in.
A camper revealed to the police that an unidentified male was sitting at a picnic table, and they thought it was suspicious because he didn’t have any camping equipment. Cole was located, and taken into custody.
Cole’s campsite was also found. He had taken Barley, one of the West’s puppies, who was found alive, tied to the tent. They also found the missing guns and ammunition neatly lined up.
Cole Pollard
Confession and Conviction
Cole waived his rights, and the police asked him what happened. He said he freaked out while he was at the West’s home. He bound Patricia’s hands with a zip tie and belt, and choked her with his arm and then his hands. Cole then revealed that he sexually assaulted her.
The police weren’t believing Cole’s story. They asked him what led him to do this. He said he had been angry for weeks, and was doing stupid shit like making his family and friends angry.
The police discovered that Cole’s ex-girlfriend had recently broken up with him before the murder. She said he was very emotional, but was shocked that he had committed this awful crime.
On May 24, 2016, Cole Pollard pleaded guilty to second degree murder and attempted sexual assault. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison.
FINAL THOUGHTS
There was a lot of information in this episode that was a little all over the place. It seemed like Trish may not have had the best relationship with her in-laws, and at first, her family believed Keith had something to do with her murder. However, it all led to Cole. I still don’t know if I believe his story about why he killed Trish, but maybe he did take it out on her because his girlfriend broke up with him. Trish was completely innocent, and he deserves to rot in prison forever.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/patricia-richmond-murder/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cops-catch-man-wanted-after-colorado-woman-found-bound-slain/
