DENVER – A 55-year-old Boulder County man was arrested this week on multiple charges relating to the death of his elderly mother, whose decomposed body was found inside the home they shared last August.
Jeffrey Apprill, 55, was arrested on suspicion of tampering with a deceased human body, criminal exploitation of an at-risk person, at-risk negligence resulting in serious bodily injury, caretaker neglect and concealing a death.
According to an affidavit for his arrest, a welfare check on his mother, Karen Apprill, was requested when Jeffrey was admitted to a hospital with an infected foot and on a mental health hold last August, and people grew suspicious when they asked about his mother and he brushed concerns aside.
Jeffrey was the primary caretaker for his mother, and people who knew her said they had not seen her in months or years.
Deputies were eventually, after more than a day, able to gain access to the home, which was owned by Karen Apprill but where both had lived. Inside, they found trash, bugs, and other signs of disarray consistent with a hoarder. The doorknobs had all been replaced with deadbolts, according to the affidavit.
Inside one of the rooms, deputies encountered a stench consistent with a decomposing body, and found the severely decomposed body of Karen Apprill underneath a blanket and more than 20 empty bags of ice and zip lock bags filled with water, which had previously been ice.
The medical examiner discovered she had likely been dead between 7 to 10 months, and that she had trauma from both before and after she died. Jeffrey was eventually interviewed and claimed she had died after a fall in the shower in March 2020, though the last time anyone else had seen her alive was May 2019.
He also admitted, according to the affidavit, that she had still been receiving Social Security payments, which he had utilized.
The medical examiner found Karen Apprill’s cause of death to be undetermined, but BCSO detectives discovered prior welfare checks and arrests linked to elder care abuse. They also, according to the affidavit, found letters between Karen and Jeffrey that hinted that Karen was aware she was starving and that her money was being used.
A warrant for Jeffrey Apprill’s arrest was signed on Tuesday, and he was arrested later that day.
Court records show Apprill had a $10,000 surety bond set in the case which had not been posted as of Thursday afternoon. He is expected to be formally charged at a court hearing Friday afternoon.