A 70-year-old suspect arrested last year in a cold case homicide, the 1999 killing of deputy district attorney Rebecca Bartee, has died in jail.
Robert Williams, who was receiving end of life care in the week prior to his death, died Saturday, according to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office. He suffered from a chronic illness.
Williams was arrested Aug. 17, 2017, as a suspect in Bartee’s death. Her body was found June 7, 1999, in her Centennial apartment in the 6500 block of South Dayton Street.
Williams and Bartee lived in the same apartment building at the time. Williams still resided there when he was arrested last year, according to a sheriff’s office news release.
Bartee was a deputy DA with the 18th Judicial District. Her death was staged to look like a suicide.
A pill bottle holding anti-depressant medication was set on the edge of the bathroom sink next to the nearly-overflowing tub of water where Bartee’s body was found. Her head was submerged in the water.
A glass of red wine, filled to the brim, was found on a small table in the living room. There were no lip marks or fingerprints on the glass. An autopsy later revealed there was no wine in her body. Investigators did not find any wine bottles in her home.
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office is not seeking any other suspects in Bartee’s homicide and the case has now been closed, the release said.
