Jeffery Lee "Jeff" Peterson was a man whose skeletal remains were found in the White River National Forest, Colorado in 2016. His skull was discovered by a group of hikers on July 10 of that year in a place called Sky Chutes. The rest of his skeleton and his belongings were discovered on August 3 of the same year.
He was identified by the DNA Doe Project on September 12, 2022.
Case[]
Peterson had a difficult childhood which left him deeply troubled. He was a graduate of Virginia Tech and majored in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research. Peterson was on the executive leadership team at Management Systems Laboratories at Virginia Tech for many years and was a pioneer in the development of E-commerce software. He loved the mountains of Colorado and would drive his RV to Summit County where he spent time hiking and skiing.
Peterson lost a large amount of money during the 2008 financial crisis which left him frustrated and disappointed. Subsequently, he told his family that he was moving to Belize "never to be heard from again". Peterson sold all of his belongings and never contacted his family after May 2012. The area of Summit County where he died was on the back side of Breckenridge Ski Area that looked across to Copper Mountain Ski Area.
Characteristics[]
- Strawberry blond hair.
- Possibly a smoker.
- Damage to the skull consistent with a self-inflicted gunshot to the head from a Glock .45 handgun discovered next to the body.
Clothing and accessories[]
- A Glock .45 handgun with a destroyed serial number.
- Three clips of ammunition for a handgun in a ziplock bag.
- Two plastic water bottles dated February 7, 2012.
- A high-tech BlackDiamond headlamp.
- Foot traction devices.
- A purple/grey 'Fila' backpack.
- Blue "Life is Good" baseball cap.
- One Leatherman tool.
- A wooden-handled hatchet.
- A dark green, gray, or black Rockport hiking shoe size 11.
- Black rubber 'Stabilizers' brand yak-tracks.
- A watch.
- Grey Garmin GPS case containing a rock.
- Can of bear deterrent spray.
- Gold wire-rimmed reading glasses.
Gallery[]
