Colorado man dead, Doberman pinscher puppies missing, sheriff asks for public's help
UPDATE: On Aug. 30, the Clear Creek County Sheriff's office announced that they have a suspect under arrest.
Investigators in Colorado's Clear Creek County are seeking the public's help as they try to locate 10 valuable Doberman pinscher puppies missing following the suspected homicide of a man at his home above Idaho Springs.
Paul Peavey, 57, was discovered dead over the weekend by a search party of friends and locals worried about his safety. Peavey had not been heard from since the evening of Aug. 19.
He lived in a trailer on property high up off Two Brothers Road in the mountainous region and ran a breeding operation called Elite European Dobermans. Peavey's website says he had been a dog lover since a young age.
"His dream was to become a breeder," said Meredith Mazutis, of Rocky Mountain Dobermans, a Western Slope breeder and longtime friend. She said she had mentored Peavey, who showed interest in breeding Dobermans.
"Paul was a wonderful person," she said. "He wanted to try to do it right from the get go."
Last week friends began to worry when Peavey fell out of touch. On Aug. 21, Bruce Boynton, owner of Pickaxe Pizza in Idaho Springs, went to Peavey's home looking for him. There was no sign of him. Four adult dogs were on the property but the puppies Peavey was raising were gone.
"I called the Clear Creek County Sheriff and was told that someone would reach right back out to me. They just had to talk to their higher-ups and make a plan."
No one got back, said Boynton.
"There were some missteps in our initial reaction and response to the reports that came in on Wednesday evening," said sheriff's office public information officer Jenny Fulton. "There were some additional things that we should have done, including push information out on Mr. Peavey while he was reported missing on our social media sites."
But that wasn't done.
More friends called the sheriff's office on Thursday. A deputy was finally sent up to the property on Two Brothers Road and the deputy saw some of the same things Boynton had seen the day before.
"I don't believe he did a search on the property because he didn't have reason to believe there was foul play," said Fulton.
Getting frustrated, friends and community members organized their own search on Saturday. Boynton talked to a deputy about going, but was told a higher-up in the department told him he was needed for traffic duty. No law enforcement went along.
"It took about 4 minutes," said Boynton as he described the discovery of Peavey's body. Not immediately visible from the main part of the property, it was on the backside of a small hill, partially buried.
There was again, no sign of the 10 puppies.
"He was a phenomenal dog trainer. I mean, he trained service dogs. He'd walk down the street with four Dobermans not even on a leash," said Boynton who was a close friend.
"He was better than the rest of us," he said.
The sheriff's office was apologetic about its handling of the case.
"What we should have done is participate in the organized search on Saturday. And we didn't take that step and I realize that there are community members that are frustrated with some of the things that have not been done," said Fulton, who said she did not have an answer to the question of why they did not join the search.
Boynton pointed out that there had been rain during the week.
"If they had come up Wednesday night and we had found him things might be a little bit ... a few days makes a difference," he said.
The Clear Creek Sheriff's Office says they are now working with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation on the case, and its office remains the lead agency in the investigation.
The dogs have a value between $4,500 to $10,000, said Mazutis. But there could have been other motives as well. Peavey may have had cash at the property, noted Boynton.
"I'm a little upset that I didn't get taken seriously. Nothing I can do about it and none of it is going to bring Paul back," Boynton said. "We've had our tragedy. Now let's see if we can get everyone back together and we need to fix some things. Obviously. And we need to find these people."
The sheriff's office is now asking for help from the public and posted the following on Facebook:
"The unaccounted for Doberman puppies may have been sold through social media sites or by other means since Tuesday, August 20. All of Mr. Peavey's puppies are microchipped. Anyone who purchased a Doberman puppy in the central Colorado area within the last week is encouraged to check the puppy for a microchip and contact the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office at 303-679-2393 or admin@clearcreeksheriff.us. We would then be able to determine if the puppy was one of Mr. Peavey's.
2. Anyone who purchased a puppy through Mr. Peavey's business, Elite European Dobermans, since June 2024 is also asked to contact the Sheriff's Office at 303-679-2393 or admin@clearcreeksheriff.us. Please contact us if you received the puppy that was purchased or if you did not receive the puppy. This will help us determine exactly how many puppies are unaccounted for."
