Authorities have recovered a pickup truck in Mississippi with a “HUNTER” sticker on the left fender, which they suspect is linked to an alleged homicide in Colorado. Police are looking for three people, two of whom are believed to be armed and dangerous.
The investigation involves multiple counties in Colorado, and the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the discovery of the vehicle, which had been the subject of a multi-state search.
The investigation began on December 19, when deputies arrived at a property in the 1800 block of Pima Drive in unincorporated El Paso County.
Deputies discovered substantial amounts of blood in many spots and issued a “Be on the Lookout” alert for two missing men: 46-year-old John Rankin Morris, and 37-year-old Stephen Walker.
On December 23, investigators asked the public for help in locating a black Audi A4 linked to the case. The following day, Park County sheriff’s deputies responded to a welfare check in Hartsel, Colorado, and discovered the Audi at a trailhead. Investigators linked the vehicle to a missing person case in El Paso County.
Deputies located the body of an adult male at a nearby residence. Given the gravity of the situation, the Park County Sheriff’s Office sought assistance from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. The El Paso County Coroner’s Office will release the person’s identify following an autopsy.
Morris and a third individual, 43-year-old Hailey Diane Cole, have been identified as persons of interest in the incident that occurred on December 19. Cole is listed as 5’5″ tall, 145 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes.Morris stands 5’9″ and weighs 150 pounds. He has brown and gray hair, blue eyes, and a tattoo on his right ear.
“Both Morris and Cole are deemed armed and dangerous. “If seen, members of the community should call 9-1-1,” the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office stated.
Walker is still “missing under suspicious circumstances,” according to the sheriff’s office. He is described as 5’11” and 160 pounds, with tanned skin, black hair, brown eyes, and tattoos on his right arm.
According to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, a blue 1994 Ford F-150 with Colorado license plate TQQ039 and a number sticker reading “HUNTER” was found in Mississippi as part of the investigation.
Cole has a criminal record in Colorado dating back at least to 2018, including a still-open case for third-degree assault in Park County from 2021 and a 2018 conviction for misdemeanor harassment and telephone obstruction in Chaffee County, for which her probation was revoked four times.
She was sentenced to 53 days in jail and granted credit for 51 days spent, plus a year of probation. There have also been many cases involving violations of protection orders in recent years, but those cases have been dismissed, and one of the orders has been vacated.
Walker, who is not considered a person of interest by investigators, has many felony convictions in Colorado. He was sentenced to probation for criminal impersonation in 2018, but it was revoked twice, and he was re-sentenced in 2019 to one year in jail, with credit for 221 days served.
He was also arrested twice for felony narcotics possession in El Paso County in 2015, and his probation was revoked twice before being sentenced to a year in jail.
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office is still looking for aid from the public and is requesting anybody with information to phone 719-390-5555; however, anyone who encounters Morris or Cole should keep away and call 911.