BOULDER, Colo. – The man accused of killing and dismembering Boulder mother Ashley Mead was formally charged in a Boulder County court Tuesday morning.
Adam Densmore, 32, heard the charges against him as he sat shackled in a light blue prison suit. The list of charges include first-degree murder, tampering with a deceased human body, tampering with evidence, and abuse of a corpse. Densmore and Mead had a 13-month-old daughter together.
Part of Mead’s body was found in a dumpster in Oklahoma; investigators believe her body was at least partially dismembered outside of Shreveport, Louisiana and parts of her body could be spread across communities through which Densmore traveled earlier this month.
Investigators believe Densmore killed Mead in Boulder and then left the city on Feb. 12. Mead and her daughter, Winter, were reported missing two days later. Densmore was arrested and the girl placed in protective custody in Oklahoma on Feb. 15.
Densmore’s exact route across the country is unclear but officials said part of Mead’s body could be in a purple suitcase somewhere between Colorado and Oklahoma. Investigators said anyone who spots such a suitcase in an odd location should call police right away.
During Densmore's court appearance Tuesday, the prosecution asked for warrants and affidavits to be unsealed, because they said there is no longer an investigative need to keep them sealed. Densmore's defense objected. Both sides will file motions and the judge is expected to rule Friday.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 4.
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