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Imagine the cold, snowy Thanksgiving air in a small Colorado mountain town. Families are eating, laughing, and staying warm. But in one house, something goes very wrong. A young mom named Kelsey Berreth disappears without a trace. No witnesses, no struggle, no signs of what happened—just silence.
This is the true, terrifying story of Kelsey Berreth. It’s a mystery filled with lies, secret relationships, burned evidence, and the digital clues that finally uncovered the truth. Let’s break it down like a MrBallen story—one strange, dark, and deeply disturbing piece at a time.
The Disappearance
Kelsey Berreth was a 29-year-old flight instructor living in Woodland Park, Colorado. She had a one-year-old daughter, Kaylee, and was engaged to a man named Patrick Frazee. On the outside, their life looked pretty normal.
On Thanksgiving Day, 2018, Kelsey was seen at the local Safeway grocery store with her baby. Security cameras showed her shopping and smiling. Later, a neighbor’s surveillance camera showed Patrick, Kelsey, and baby Kaylee walking into Kelsey’s townhouse. After that, she was never seen again.
Ten days went by.
No one heard from Kelsey—not even her mom, Cheryl, who she called all the time. Cheryl lived in another state and grew more and more worried. On December 2nd, she called the Woodland Park Police for a welfare check.
When police arrived at Kelsey’s home, they found something strange. Her car was in the driveway. Her purse was inside. There were no signs of a struggle. It was like she had just… vanished.
Suspicious Behavior
Investigators quickly focused on Patrick Frazee. He was the last person to see her, and they had a child together. But from the start, Patrick acted strange. While Kelsey’s family was doing everything they could to find her, Patrick was staying quiet. He didn’t speak to the media. He didn’t join in the search.
Patrick told police that Kelsey broke up with him on Thanksgiving. He said she gave him her purse, keys, and even her gun. He also said she might’ve been depressed and left on her own.
He claimed they were still texting each other for several days after Thanksgiving. But something about his story didn’t feel right. He refused to let police search his property, and he didn’t want to give them his DNA.
That’s when investigators turned to something that doesn’t lie: cell phone data.
The Phones Tell the Truth
The FBI brought in an expert to analyze cell phone records. What they found completely broke open the case.
Kelsey’s phone didn’t send any real messages after Thanksgiving. But it moved. On November 25, it pinged off towers all the way in Gooding, Idaho. That’s over 700 miles away—and it just so happened that Patrick’s ex-girlfriend, Krystal Lee, lived there.
Krystal Lee was a nurse in Idaho and had been in an on-and-off relationship with Patrick for years. She would soon become a key part of the case.
Back in Colorado, Patrick’s phone and Kelsey’s phone were tracked moving together—going from Kelsey’s home to Patrick’s ranch, a place called Nash Ranch. Then Kelsey’s phone disappeared.
The digital trail told a chilling story. Patrick had Kelsey’s phone. He was trying to make it look like she was still alive. But the pings and movement showed she wasn’t.
The Burn Pit
With digital clues pointing to Patrick, investigators searched his property. In a burn pit, they found melted plastic, bits of fabric, and what looked like burned bone.
Even though they couldn’t get perfect DNA results because the remains were too damaged, the evidence told a horrifying story.
Then came the final piece: Krystal Lee.
Krystal’s Shocking Confession
Krystal Lee agreed to cooperate with investigators. Her story was shocking.
Patrick, she said, had asked her several times to kill Kelsey. He gave her ideas—poison her coffee, hit her with a metal rod—but she never followed through. Finally, Patrick told her he had taken care of it himself.
On Thanksgiving Day, he lured Kelsey into her home. While she was playing with baby Kaylee in another room, he beat her to death with a baseball bat. Then he put her body in a black plastic tote.
Patrick called Krystal afterward and said he had “a mess to clean up.”
Krystal drove from Idaho to Colorado. When she arrived at Kelsey’s home, she found blood everywhere—on the floor, the walls, even the ceiling. She spent hours cleaning it up with bleach and other supplies.
She also took Kelsey’s phone and drove it back to Idaho to destroy it. That’s why Kelsey’s phone pinged in Idaho—Krystal had it.
Later, Patrick burned Kelsey’s body, along with the tote and other evidence, in the burn pit on his ranch. He even threw in baby toys and cleaning supplies.
The Arrest and Trial
On December 21, 2018, Patrick Frazee was arrested and charged with Kelsey’s murder.
During the trial, the prosecution showed:
- Cell phone records proving the movement of Kelsey’s and Patrick’s phones.
- Testimony from Krystal describing the murder, cleanup, and cover-up.
- Evidence from the burn pit matching what Krystal described.
Patrick didn’t testify, and his defense team tried to blame everything on Krystal. But the jury didn’t buy it.
In November 2019, Patrick Frazee was found guilty of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole, plus 156 years for other charges.
Krystal Lee pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence and got a lighter sentence—three years in prison—in exchange for her testimony.
The Legacy
To this day, Kelsey’s body has never been fully recovered. But her daughter Kaylee is being raised by Kelsey’s family, who continue to fight for justice and raise awareness about domestic violence.
The Kelsey Berreth case became a landmark in using digital evidence—especially cell phone data—to solve a murder with no body. It showed how modern forensics, persistence, and a bit of luck could expose even the darkest secrets.
From a happy Thanksgiving to a horrifying crime, this story is a chilling reminder that evil can hide in plain sight. The clues were small—texts, calls, a burn pit—but they added up to reveal the terrible truth.
And that’s what happened to Kelsey Berreth.
