Suspect arrested in connection to death of Clear Creek Doberman breeder

By Sage Kelley August 30, 2024 | updated 2 years ago

Sergio Ferrer, 36, was initially arrested for an unrelated warrant out of Nebraska

Paul Peavey, 57, was shot and killed in Clear Creek County on Aug. 19. The Doberman breeder had 10 puppies at the time.Sergio Ferrer, 36, was arrested in connection to the murder on Aug. 24. (Courtesy of 9NEWS)

The Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office arrested and filed charges against a man in connection to the killing of a local Doberman breeder.

Clear Creek deputies, along with the help of the Georgetown Police Department, arrested 36-year-old Sergio Ferrer on Aug. 24 on an unrelated warrant out of Nebraska for the failure to appear in court on a weapons charge.

At the time, Ferrer was deemed a person of interest in the homicide investigation of 57-year-old Paul Peavey, authorities said.

Investigators with the sheriff’s office, Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the 5th Judicial District Attorney’s Office were able to “establish enough evidence” to support charges of first-degree murder, felony murder and aggravated robbery, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

The sheriff’s office has requested the arrest affidavit to be sealed.

Peavey, a Doberman breeder from the area of Idaho Springs, was reported missing on Aug. 21, according to the sheriff’s office.

On Aug. 24, three days after, a group searching for him found his body on his property.

The Clear Creek County Coroner’s Office confirmed the manner of death as homicide and tied the time of death with the timeframe that Peavey was last heard from on Aug. 19. The coroner’s office said he was shot.

Ten Doberman puppies owned by Peavey went missing after the shooting and remained unaccounted for.

It’s unknown whether the shooting was connected to the puppies.

The incident has local breeders on edge.

“The situation has given breeders a sense of unease (regardless of the breed), whether it’s advisable to advertise that you have puppies for sale, and whether you want people you don’t know coming to your house,” Wendie Schneider, administrator for the Focus on the Doberman Pinscher Club of America Facebook group told The Denver Gazette.

She added that Doberman puppies can go for around $500 each, with ear-cropped puppies selling as much as $1,500 to $3,000.

In a post to an Idaho Springs Facebook group Tuesday, Clear Creek Sheriff Matthew Harris called the office’s initial response to the missing person report unacceptable.

Harris acknowledged his office received a missing person’s report on Wednesday evening, but a deputy never went to the property that night.

“We didn’t go, and it was not the right decision,” Harris said in an interview with The Denver Gazette’s news partner, 9News

Bruce Boynton, the search party organizer and a close friend of Peavey’s, said they shouldn’t have been the ones to find Peavey’s body, and that authorities should have acted sooner.

Harris said he agrees.

“It’s one of the things that weighs heavy on my heart is that these folks had to go, and they had to see that,” Harris said. “And we should have been there, side by side, assisting on that.”

An internal investigation will be conducted to see how the agency failed in its response to the missing person report, Harris said.

The 5th Judicial District Attorney’s Office will determine final charges against Ferrer.

Authorities asked anyone with information about the investigation or the missing puppies to call the sheriff’s office at 303-670-7567 or submit a tip via email at [email protected].

The Denver Gazette reporter Carol McKinley and 9News contributed to this report

Paul Peavey, 57, was shot and killed in Clear Creek County on Aug. 19. The Doberman breeder had 10 puppies at the time, all of which are still missing. Sergio Ferrer, 36, was arrested in connection to the murder on Aug. 24. (Courtesy of 9NEWS)

Tags Arrest clear creek county coroner’s office clear creek county sheriff's office Colorado Bureau Of Investigation doberman pinscher club of america dobermann Georgetown Police Department judicial district attorney’s office matthew harris Murder Sergio Ferrer

Sage Kelley

Reporter