The body of a man found in Washington may be connected to a Denver homicide.
Authorities found a badly decomposed body Wednesday in Riffe Lake, south of the Tacoma area, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
The body is believed to be that of a 49-year-old Denver man who is a suspect in a homicide here in March.
Washington investigators said the Denver man is wanted in connection with the death of his girlfriend.
Rose Westendorf, 30, is Denver’s lone female homicide victim in March, according to the Denver Office of the Medical Examiner.
Westendorf’s body was found March 25 in a home on the 4600 block of South Lowell Boulevard, the coroner’s office said. She died of blow to the head with a blunt object.
Denver police today identified a suspect in Westendorf’s death as James Sprague.
Denver police stressed that they do not have “positive confirmation” that the body found in Washington is Sprague.
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said detectives found identification in a backpack next to the body and they also found a vehicle registered to the Denver man near the Blue Lake campground, outside Randle, in April.
The Lewis County coroner is working to identify the man and determine a cause in his death.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
