Firefighters found the body of a dead sheriff’s deputy in a burned house in southwestern Colorado, and La Plata County authorities have called the Colorado Bureau of Investigation to help determine what happened.
CBI officials on Sunday identified the body pulled Friday from the charred house at Bayfield as 42-year-old La Plata County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeremiah Lee.
Lee had worked as a deputy for less than two years, moving more recently to a rural beat, following work over more than a decade for the Durango Police Department. Earlier this year, the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association honored Lee as the Law Enforcement Officer of the Year — an award given for extraordinary performance and exceptional service.
“He was found in the burned house,” apparently his home, CBI spokeswoman Susan Medina said.
“We are investigating. The cause of death has not been determined. We cannot confirm whether or not he was shot,” Medina said.
La Plata County authorities could not immediately be reached on Sunday night.
