DENVER (TCN) — A 50-year-old man is in custody after allegedly killing his wife and flagging down a passerby to call for help because she was injured and “on the ground struggling to breathe.”
On Monday, Aug. 19, Denver Police officers and paramedics responded to the scene and transported the female victim to the hospital, where she was pronounced deceased. According to a probable cause statement reviewed by KUSA-TV, authorities initially found her on a bed with “significant bruising and abrasions” to her neck.
Authorities reportedly determined the injuries were consistent with strangulation and being dragged through heavy brush. Investigators allegedly observed debris all over the victim’s clothing, as well as additional injuries, including scratches and abrasions on her back.
According to the probable cause statement, police spoke with the victim’s husband, Brian Mervin, and he seemed to be “breathing heavily and sweating profusely,” KUSA reports. Mervin allegedly stayed inside, drank soda, and smoked a cigarette as medics performed lifesaving measures to his wife in an ambulance outside the home.
KUSA reports that there were inconsistencies in Mervin’s statement regarding his wife’s injuries.
Another individual allegedly told detectives they heard Mervin and his wife arguing, but they hadn’t seen anything physical. Two other neighbors reportedly said they frequently heard Mervin and a woman fighting at the home, and it often sounded like items were thrown.
Mervin remains held in the Denver County Detention Center on one count of first-degree murder, but the Denver District Attorney will file formal charges. The Office of the Medical Examiner will positively identify the victim and disclose her cause and manner of death.