BLUE RIVER, Colo. — In a startling courtroom revelation this week, Summit County authorities detailed the grim accusations against 46-year-old Daniel DeVito, charged with the murder of a woman and a violent assault on another in a serene mountain town earlier this month.
According to police, the disturbances began on the evening of July 7 when DeVito allegedly murdered 32-year-old Jordan Labarre in a residence on Aspen Meadows Circle. Neighbors alerted by gunfire called law enforcement, who surrounded the house. DeVito surrendered peacefully to the authorities shortly after.
Upon his arrest, DeVito alarmingly claimed to have killed “three people in the house that were Cartel,” however, police found only Labarre’s body. An autopsy later confirmed her death as a homicide, with a fatal gunshot wound to the head. DeVito purported that he feared cartel retribution and believed the individuals he shot were clad in body armor, a claim found baseless upon police investigation.
Court documents indicate that Labarre might have tried to hide in the master bedroom, attempting to barricade herself from her assailant, who was reportedly a former romantic partner. Despite her efforts, DeVito is accused of breaking into the room and fatally shooting her.
Aside from the murder charge, DeVito faces accusations of first-degree assault, menacing with a deadly weapon, false imprisonment, criminal mischief, and domestic violence, all leading to his arrest and detention at the Summit County Detention Facility.
Moreover, the investigation unearthed another distressing episode involving DeVito that occurred just days before Labarre’s murder. Another woman, who stayed at DeVito’s house on July 4, reported a harrowing experience where she was confined to a bathroom and threatened with death. The woman described a sinister interrogation involving handwritten questions about “truth and honor” before being physically restrained and attacked.
According to the survivor’s testimony, after several hours of fear and torment, DeVito released her from the bathroom, only to have her restrained again and her chest slashed with a switchblade, a wound nearly a foot in length. DeVito then disinfected the cut with hydrogen peroxide. The woman, fearing retribution, did not immediately report the attack, but it came to light during the investigation following Labarre’s murder.
The motives behind these violent acts remain unclear as DeVito is yet to provide his plea, scheduled for January 20, 2026. Meanwhile, this string of violent incidents has left the community of Blue River in shock, struggling to reconcile these brutal acts with the tranquility they once took for granted.
Officials continue to piece together the events that disturbed the peace in this small town, as residents and authorities alike seek justice and attempt to restore the sense of security that has been profoundly shaken.