Who is Alan Lee Phillips and where is he now?
Alan Lee Philips was convicted of first-degree murder and kidnapping by a Park County jury in September 2022.
Alan was arrested in February 2021 after DNA testing linked him to the kidnapping and murder of Annette Schnee and Barbara “Bobbi Jo” Oberholtzer, who were 21 and 29 years old when they died in 1982, according to the Park County Sheriff’s office.
Barbara and Annette were thought to have been killed while hitchhiking outside Breckenridge, southwest of Denver, on January 6, 1982.
Alan, who worked as a miner and automobile mechanic, was sentenced to serve two life sentences without the possibility of parole on Monday, November 7, 2022.
Alan, 71, was believed to have shot the two victims as they hitchhiked home on a snowy night in the Colorado ski resort town.
The 71-year-old Colorado native stated that he would appeal his conviction because he believed the DNA evidence used against him during the trial was contaminated and mishandled.
How was Alan Lee Phillips linked to the crime?
The Colorado District Attorneys’ Council (CDAC) issued a press release detailing Alan’s involvement in the murder and kidnapping of the two women.
“The Schnee family hired Charlie McCormick who worked on it for decades and eventually heard about United Data Connect, a forensic science company specializing in DNA work,” according to the press release. Once involved, United Data Connect was able to extract DNA from some of the case evidence and match it to two brothers via genealogy.
“Only one of them, Alan Phillips, had lived in Colorado. Investigators tested a DNA sample from some of his garbage and determined that he was a match. He was arrested, tested again, and the original DNA match was confirmed.
“More of Oberholtzer’s clothes from her death were tested and resulted in further DNA matches. Phillips, a miner and automobile mechanic, lived in the area the past four decades.”
How were the bodies of his victims discovered?
After the pair went missing on January 6, 1982, Barbara’s belongings were found the next morning.
“They discovered Bobbi Jo’s driver’s license and other ID cards, her blue backpack, an orange booty, wool glove, and tissue covered in blood,” the CDAC said.
Her body was found later that afternoon – 400 feet from the top of Hoosier Pass, hidden in the snowbanks off the road.
“She had been shot twice,” the CDAC said.
A few months later, Annette’s body was found about 10 miles away from Barbara’s.
On July 3, 1982, a boy came across the body while fishing.
Annette was shot in the back and she was wearing an orange booty that matched the one from Barbara’s’s belongings, KKTV reported.
source:nsemwokrom.com
