One of two men arrested in the murder of a veterinarian is the brother of a teenager who was found dead five years ago in Denver, his body stuffed into a suitcase and dumped in a vacant lot near Ruby Hill Park.
The connection was confirmed to 9Wants To Know by the mother of both young men.
The death of Josh Churchwell has never been solved – his body was so badly decomposed when it was found that the cause of his death could not be determined. At the Denver Medical Examiner’s Office, the manner of his death continues to be listed as “undetermined” and the Denver Police Department has it classified as a cold case.
He was 17 years old when he ran away and eventually vanished in January 2011. Boys searching for scrap metal at an undeveloped lot in the 1700 block of West Atlantic Place came upon his body April 1, 2011.
He was in the fetal position inside the suitcase, partially buried in the trash-strewn field.
Now his older brother, Isaiah Churchwell, 24, is one of two people being held on suspicion of first-degree murder and other charges in last Friday’s killing of Dr. Cynthia Campbell-Eason.
Tuesday morning, Jan Churchwell confirmed to 9NEWS that she is the mother of both Isaiah Churchwell and Josh Churchwell.
She declined to talk about either Josh Churchwell’s death or the arrest of Isaiah Churchwell in the killing of Dr. Campbell-Eason.
The other suspect in the veterinarian’s murder is her 19-year-old stepson, Dylan Eason.
Isaiah Churchwell and Dylan Eason appeared in court Tuesday afternoon where Judge Kevin Hoyer told them they could face charges including first-degree murder, aggravated robbery, burglary and theft in the wake of the killing. Both were jailed without bail pending the formal filing of charges and their next hearing, which was scheduled for June 14.
They appeared in court wearing orange-and-white jail jumpsuits, their wrists cuffed and locked to belly chains and their ankles shackled.
Hoyer told the pair that a first-degree murder conviction would carry a minimum sentence of life in prison without parole – and could also lead to a death sentence.
Also at the hearing, the judge ordered Dylan Eason to have no contact with his father, Jon Eason, who was married to the victim.
Dr. Campbell-Eason died of blunt-force trauma inside her home in the 1300 block of Jasmine Street in Burlington, a town of about 4,200 off Interstate 70 near the Kansas border.
Burlington police officers arrested Isaiah Churchwell and Dylan Eason a few hours after the killing. They have released few other details about the case, and an arrest affidavit remained sealed Tuesday.
Jon Eason earlier told 9NEWS that he believes the killers deserve the death penalty. That includes his son, he said.
And he talked about his late wife.
"She was such a good doctor and she was so smart, and I mean, you know, a veterinarian's gotta heal an animal that can't tell them what's wrong," Jon Eason said. "And people in this town loved her, and people in Kansas City loved her.
"What did I love? Well, those blue eyes and her laugh. That deep laugh she had."
Contact 9NEWS reporter Kevin Vaughan with tips about this or any story: kevin.vaughan@9news.com or 303-871-1862.
