A sheriff’s deputy three days after likely shot himself, state investigators said Thursday.
La Plata County Coroner Jann Smith found, according to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Jeremiah Lee, 42, had a “probable” self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Officials cautioned, however, that a final, official cause of death won’t be determined until laboratory testing is done in up to six weeks.
Lee left his post at the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office on Oct. 10, after telling his supervisors earlier in the month about a “personal situation in his life” that sparked an administrative investigation.
Authorities have not elaborated on the information Lee provided to the sheriff’s office or the nature of the investigation.
On Oct. 12, La Plata County Sheriff Sean Smith asked a member of his crisis intervention team to check on Lee’s welfare.
The member met with Lee at about 9:15 p.m. that night and, according to a news release, “reportedly, the conversation went well and the men made arrangements to meet for lunch in the near future.”
Shortly after midnight on the morning of Oct. 13, however, firefighters responded to a report of a blaze at Lee’s home in Bayfield, just east of Durango, and found him unresponsive.
CBI has taken lead in the investigation into Lee’s death. Further information on its probe has not been released.
Lee had served with the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office for nearly two years before his death, and worked at the Durango Police Department for 18 years before that.
“Jeremiah Lee was a lifelong resident of La Plata County and will be deeply missed by all those (who) knew him,” the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. “Jeremiah was a father, a son, a brother, a friend and a law enforcement officer (who) served his community for 20 years.”
