BOULDER — The man accused of raping and killing a University of Colorado student a decade ago vehemently denied any involvement to police and said he would have fled to his native Chile if he had committed the crime.
Diego Olmos Alcalde, 39, and his lawyers are in Boulder County District Court this week for a series of pretrial hearings before Judge James Klein.
On Monday, Boulder police officers recounted their Jan. 26, 2008, arrest of Alcalde. They said a DNA sample he was required to submit after a kidnapping conviction in Wyoming matched evidence taken from the body of Susannah Chase, who was raped and beaten to death Dec. 20, 1997.
As part of the testimony, prosecutors showed a DVD of Alcalde in an interview room at the Boulder Police Department protesting his innocence.
“If I was doing some crime like that, I’d be gone,” he told detectives. “I’d be in Chile or something.”
Also Monday, Alcalde’s attorney questioned whether he had been properly advised of his Miranda right.
Under questioning from defense attorney Mary Mulligan, police acknowledged they lied, telling Alcalde he was being arrested on an immigration violation.
