A second arrest has been made in connection to the triple homicide that took place Monday in Westcliffe.
Nancy Rae Medina Koch is charged with accessory to a crime, pending the continuing investigation into the shooting. She and shooting suspect Hanme K. Clark are being held in New Mexico while awaiting extradition to Colorado.
Clark is accused of murdering three neighbors and injuring one other on Monday. He was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon during a high-risk felony traffic stop by New Mexico State Police and U.S. Marshals.
Custer County Sheriff Rich Smith on Tuesday said the suspect was arrested near Albuquerque in the same vehicle that he was believed to have been driving when he fled Westcliffe. Koch was with Clark at the time of his arrest. No details have been released regarding her relation to Clark.
Clark is facing three counts of first-degree murder.
Teams worked around the clock to locate Clark, Smith said Tuesday, noting that it was about 25 hours from the time of the incident to the time of the apprehension.
“Now I want to take the focus off the suspect and put the focus on the victims,” Smith said.
The incident that led to the shooting reportedly began with a property dispute at 173 Rocky Ridge Road on the property line in the wooded area.
Rob Geers, 63, and his wife, Beth Wade Geers, 73, along with James Daulton, 58, died at the scene of the shooting.
The fourth victim, Patty Daulton, is being treated at a trauma center for her injuries. Smith said her condition is improving.
Another witness ran to safety and provided information to law enforcement. Smith confirmed that Clark was not on his property at the time of the shooting.
Smith said the Geers and the Daultons own property that borders that of Clark.
“I will quit using the suspectap name because I don’t want to give him any notoriety,” he said. “We just wanted to get him into custody and then make it about healing for our community and the families. I hope that this brings relief to the neighborhood and to the community and more importantly, closure to the families of the victims and their friends.”
If anyone is in need of mental health support after this traumatic event, call the Westcliffe SolVista office at 719-783-0566.
