Text messages from Suzanne Morphew, a mother of two who went missing in 2020, released for the first time on Tuesday suggest that both she and her husband were having affairs with other people while married before she disappeared.
Morphew, 49, disappeared during a Colorado bike ride on Mother's Day in 2020 and is now presumed dead.
In a March 7, 2020 message to a man named Jeff Libler, who the Denver Gazette described as a high school flame, Suzanne wrote: "Nobody loves you...like the way I do. I crave time with you. I crave the feeling I get when we connect. Physically or emotionally. You’re my guy. Always."
On May 8, 2020, she again messaged Libler, "You’re the only real love I’ve known...the only love I want."
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She also mentioned plans to meet up with him in August, writing, "I’m thinking August and being wrapped up with each other… where we both belong."
More than a month later, on April 24, 2020, she sent her husband, Barry Morphew, a message suggesting she knew about his "mistress."
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"Oh, I’m sure your mistress has you all happy now so you can say you love me but bully me when you’re with me… yea that’s love," she wrote.
Four days before her disappearance, Suzanne sent Barry a text saying she was "done."
"We need to figure this out civilly," she said.
Prosecutors initially alleged that Barry murdered Suzanne after she decided to leave him, but they later asked a judge to drop and dismiss the murder charges without prejudice in April 2022.
Barry's attorney, Iris Eytan, said her client "did not know" about Suzanne's "two-year" affair with Libler, who she said has never been "fully investigated" by law enforcement.
"Jeff Libler, who was one of the only people who knew Suzanne was alone at the Morphew house on May 10, 2020, deleted all remnants of communications with Suzanne after she went missing. Jeff Libler was never fully investigated by law enforcement as a participant or being connected to Suzanne’s disappearance," Eytan said.
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In a November 2020 interview with Libler, he told investigators Suzanne "wanted out of her marriage," according to prosecutors.
READ SUZANNE'S MESSAGES:
Barry Morphew has said he and his wife had a "perfect" romantic evening on May 9, the day before she went missing, but prosecutors said her text about figuring things "out civilly" make Barry's comments "completely unbelievable," according to a March 2022 court document released Tuesday.
Lengthy messages from Suzanne in 2019 and 2020 to her sister, Melinda Baumunk, and college best friend, Sheila Oliver, allege emotional and physical abuse from Barry. She also shared her belief that Barry was being "manipulative" toward their two daughters, Macy and Mallory. The texts suggest their daughters were heavily involved in conversations about their parents' deteriorating relationship.
On May 8, 2020, she sent a text to her sister saying it has been "hard dealing with the harsh abrasive ness [sic] and having to show respect," apparently referring to her husband.
"I went through a period of acceptance and I feel more angry now. Anger at what I’ve allowed," Suzanne said.
In January 2019 texts to Oliver, Suzanne suggested her husband was noticing changes in her behavior.
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"He says I’ve been so diff [sic] the last year or so and he can’t love me like I need unless my old sweet self is back," she said.
Months later, in July 2019, she texted Oliver, "He's so emotionally abusive and defensive … manipulative with the girls too. He’s probably brainwashing them. He’s got them feeling sorry for him[.] Always playing martyr."
Barry maintains that he is innocent in his wife's disappearance and suspected death. He filed a lawsuit against Colorado prosecutors on May 2, arguing that 11th District prosecutors violated his civil rights with the accusations made against him.
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In a May 2 statement about Barry's lawsuit, Eytan said the 55-year-old father "suffered the indignity of being wrongfully arrested, jailed and prosecuted for a crime he did not commit."
"We will not rest until those responsible for this miscarriage of justice are held accountable," she said.
Last month, Eytan filed a complaint against 11th Judicial District Attorney Linda Stanley and six other prosecutors for "a pattern of ethical violations eviscerating public trust in the criminal legal system and disregarding the rights of Mr. Morphew and his daughters."
Stanley told FOX 31 Denver in a statement that the "potential filing of a complaint against an attorney is not equivalent to the attorney engaging in any misconduct" and "anyone can file a complaint against a lawyer with the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel."
In a statement ahead of Mother's Day, Barry and his daughters said they have missed Suzanne "every single day for the last three years."
"We keep hoping that DA Stanley and Law Enforcement will use every resource to find her," the family said.
