CO CO - Bonita Raye Morgan, 27, found strangled to death behind the Dewitt Hotel in the alley of the 1500 blk at Glenarm and Tremont Streets, 27 Mar 1979

[Truly_Mysterious]

Bonita Raye (Reynolds) Morgan​

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Case Details​	Victim Details​
Case Type: Homicide	Gender: Female
Case Status: OPEN	Race: Caucasian
Incident Date: 03/27/1979	Height: 5' 8"
Agency: Denver Police Department	Weight: 108 lbs
Agency Case #: 79-502728	Hair: Blond/Strawberry
State: Colorado	Eyes: Blue
County: Denver	Age: 27
City: Denver	Date of Birth: 03/04/1952
Judicial District: 2nd Judicial District	Date of Death: 03/27/1979
	Occupation: Model

About this Case:​

On March 27, 1979, Bonita Morgan was found murdered behind the Dewitt Hotel in the alley of the 1500 block at Glenarm and Tremont Streets. Investigation found Bonita Morgan had been strangled to death.

If you have any information about this case, please contact:​

Denver Police Department, Denver, Colorado

LINKS: Colorado.gov Cold Case File , Denvergov.org Cold Case File .pdf

 

[Truly_Mysterious]

Newspaper articles from the time of the murder, March 1979




Clipping from the greensboro record Friday, Apr 06, 1979 Greensboro, NC Page: 1

Clipping from the greensboro record Friday, Apr 06, 1979 Greensboro, NC Page: 7


Clipping from GREENSBORO DAILY NEWS Saturday, Apr 07, 1979 Greensboro, NC Page: 16

 

[Truly_Mysterious]

Newspaper articles from the time of the murder, March/April 1979
(converted to plain text for easy reading)



Former resident
brutally slain

BY JIM WICKER, Record Staff Writer

A former Greensboro woman, Ms. Bonita Reynolds Morgan was brutally murdered in Denver, Colo., March 28.
The bizarre homicide has received wide publicity in Colorado in the past week, but details of the death were only learned here late this morning.
Ms. Morgan, a model for amateur photographers, was strangled and thrown from a second-story window of a hotel, according to Denver sources.
Before her body was discovered in an alley off Glenarm Street in downtown Denver, someone set fire to her long blonde hair, in apparent effort to disfigure her face.
A drifter, identified as Eugene Ferris, 30, who has been staying in the old DeWitt Hotel, has been arrested as a suspect. Ferris was believed to be the occupant of the room from which the body was thrown.
Police were quoted as saying the victim, her boyfriend and another man were in the suspect's room March 28.
Later, a police officer on routine patrol was attracted to the alley by the fire and found the victim's fully clothed body.
For several days, according to one source, police attempted to find the victim's husband, not aware that she had been divorced for two years. Earlier this week, members of the victim's family in Greensboro were notified.
Release of the body to relatives was delayed pending more tests in the homicide investigation.
The death occurred in a district of Denver frequented by transients and drifters, and consisting of several old hotels used by transients, according to a news account of the incident.
Ms. Morgan reportedly moved to Denver about five years ago, while still married. Her ex-husband reportedly now lives in the Burlington area.
A native of Greensboro, the victim was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Wells.
Police know little about the murder suspect.

from the greensboro record Friday, Apr 06, 1979 Greensboro, NC Page: 1 and Page: 7



Suspect Arrested
In Brutal Slaying

Denver, Colo., police have arrested a suspect in a brutal March 28 murder of a former Greensboro woman.
Denver police said Eugene Ferris, 30, who had been staying in the old DeWitt Hotel. has been arrested for the murder of Bonita Reynolds Morgan, a model for amateur photographers.
Police said Morgan was strangled and thrown from a second-story window of a hotel and her long blonde hair set afire before her body was discovered in an alley in downtown Denver.
A patrolman on his regular route was attracted by the fire in the alley.
Police described the suspect as a drifter.
The incident occurred in an area of Denver’s downtown that is highly frequented by transients.

from GREENSBORO DAILY NEWS Saturday, Apr 07, 1979 Greensboro, NC Page: 16

 

[Truly_Mysterious]

Interesting, Bonita's Divorce Index information shows she got divorced only 5 days before she was found dead at the hotel. That kinda suggests someone in my opinion.

Also, the newspaper article (quoted below) states that Bonita had been divorced for two years. I wonder who fed them misleading information! Probably the same guy.

Former resident
brutally slain

BY JIM WICKER, Record Staff Writer

A former Greensboro woman, Ms. Bonita Reynolds Morgan was brutally murdered in Denver, Colo., March 28.
The bizarre homicide has received wide publicity in Colorado in the past week, but details of the death were only learned here late this morning.
Ms. Morgan, a model for amateur photographers, was strangled and thrown from a second-story window of a hotel, according to Denver sources.
Before her body was discovered in an alley off Glenarm Street in downtown Denver, someone set fire to her long blonde hair, in apparent effort to disfigure her face.
A drifter, identified as Eugene Ferris, 30, who has been staying in the old DeWitt Hotel, has been arrested as a suspect. Ferris was believed to be the occupant of the room from which the body was thrown.
Police were quoted as saying the victim, her boyfriend and another man were in the suspect's room March 28.
Later, a police officer on routine patrol was attracted to the alley by the fire and found the victim's fully clothed body.
For several days, according to one source, police attempted to find the victim's husband, not aware that she had been divorced for two years. Earlier this week, members of the victim's family in Greensboro were notified.
Release of the body to relatives was delayed pending more tests in the homicide investigation.
The death occurred in a district of Denver frequented by transients and drifters, and consisting of several old hotels used by transients, according to a news account of the incident.
Ms. Morgan reportedly moved to Denver about five years ago, while still married. Her ex-husband reportedly now lives in the Burlington area.
A native of Greensboro, the victim was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Wells.
Police know little about the murder suspect.

from the greensboro record Friday, Apr 06, 1979 Greensboro, NC Page: 1 and Page: 7

 

[Truly_Mysterious]

The place of the murder - photos of the De Witt Hotel before it was demolished

De Witt Hotel on Glenarm Pl (1970s)

16th St and Glenarm Pl (1979)

 

[Truly_Mysterious]

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