Officials rule deaths as murder-suicide

RANGELY — Authorities ruled Tuesday’s shooting deaths of a rural Rangely couple a murder-suicide.
County Coroner Ran Cochran identified the couple as Carlos Graham Sr., 68, and Lucille Graham, 64. They lived one mile west of Rangely.
Both died of gunshot wounds to the head. A 12-gauge shotgun was recovered at the scene.
The bodies of the couple were found Tuesday morning inside a single-family residence at 284 County Road 102.
“It appears she was killed in her sleep,” Rio Blanco County Undersheriff Mike Joos. “Death was instantaneous. His prints were on the gun.”
The bodies were found on the bed in a bedroom.
Joos said family members had talked to the couple as late as 9 p.m. Monday. Asked about a possible motive, Joos said, “The reality is we may never know. There are a couple of things we’ve been told that we’re looking into. One, being her poor health. In fact, they were supposed to go to Denver (Wednesday) to see a specialist. They were both distraught over her declining medical condition.”
Joos said he did not know specifics about Lucille Graham’s medical condition. No suicide note was found.
Joos said another factor may have been one of the couple’s sons was arrested Monday night in Vernal, Utah.
“I can’t comment on that,” Joos said. “That’s not our case.”
A spokeswoman with the Vernal Police Department said they had not received a copy of the arrest report yet.
Co-workers of Carlos Graham Sr. discovered the bodies. They went to the house after he failed to show up for work. A call to the sheriff’s dispatch came in around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.
“(The man) had worked for the company for 18 years and had never been late, so two co-workers were sent to the house,” Joos. “They banged on the door, but got no answer. They saw the TV was on in the house.”
Both of the couple’s vehicles were parked in the driveway.
Investigators from the Crime Scene Investigation Unit of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation out of Grand Junction arrived about 5 p.m. Tuesday and worked into the night.
The last homicide in Rangely is believed to have been in 2003, according to Joos.
“That occurred in the city limits and was a murder-suicide,” he said.