EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. — Almost a year after he went missing, we're learning a former El Paso County Sheriff's Deputy is in the Teller County Jail. Kevin Sypher is facing multiple charges including theft and misconduct in office.
News 5 Investigates has learned the timing of his disappearance could have something to do with the dissolution of this second marriage. His ex-wife did not want to comment on the story but is aware News 5 is working on the story.
Court documents show that she discovered Sypher was already married to another woman just one month after she married him. Days after her discovery, Sypher walked off into Rocky Mountain National Forest and wasn't heard from for nearly a year.
His colleagues arrested Sypher on Tuesday, April 2 and booked him into the jail around 6:30 in the evening. The 57-year-old was charged with felony theft, felony charitable fraud, and two counts of official misconduct.
In looking into Sypher's background, News 5 Investigates learned Sypher and his wife, Sara, worked together and that she is also in law enforcement. In her petition to declare her marriage to Kevin Sypher invalid, the court documents say that less than a month after they got married in March 2023, she learned her new husband was already married to a woman in California.
In one court document associated with the Invalidity of Marriage petition, it outlines how the petitioner or PET, Sara, learned of the deceit by the respondant or RSP, Kevin Sypher. It reads, " The PET became aware of the facts on 4/24 and 5/15/23. The PET indicates that the RSP was married to another person at the time of the marriage and that the RSP has disappeared."
This is relevant because the first date listed, April 24, 2023, when the document says Kevin Sypher's wife "learned the facts" that he was already married is just three days before he went missing. It's unclear why Sypher walked away but it will be interesting to learn whether her discovery of his secret affected his decision to walk off into the forest.
The charges Sypher faces offer context to why the sheriff's office terminated Sypher from his role in August 2023. Months ago, the sheriff's office denied our Open Records Request to learn the reason behind his termination.
There was a significant amount of media coverage and concern from his family and colleagues when Sypher went missing around
this time last year in the park. He actually went missing twice.
On April 27, 2023 Sypher's family reported him missing to Parker Police and two days later, he was found and reunited with his family. Then the next day on April 30, family told police he walked away from their vehicle into the Wild Basin area of Rocky Mountain National Park. That sparked a search and rescue mission that lasted five days forcing around Copeland Falls where a group of hikers say they saw a man who matched Sypher's description. On May 5, last year the search was suspended.
Then the sheriff's office announced Sypher's arrest in Teller County.
Sypher worked with the sheriff's office for 11 years and some of that time, sources tell News 5 Investigates, Sypher was working in the county jail and conducting investigations.
There are outstanding questions about how these charges affect his previous work, and what kind of misconduct he could have been involved in as a deputy. However, the sheriff's office could not shed much light on the charges.
A spokesperson with the office sent us a statement that says, in part, "This is an active ongoing investigation and further details will not be disclosed at this time."
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