Page 45 - Stream Bed News Today

>> reporter: for the folks charged with keeping the woods and waters around cottonwood creek safe, leslie muellers drowning was a tragedy, but also a mystery. >> you know, i put myself in freds shoes, and they didnt fit. >> reporter: sheriff ron bruce had thought freds demeanor the day leslie died was unusual. fred, to him, showed a lack of emotion. but what really spoke volumes to the sheriff and his team was something they knew well -- the terrain around cottonwood creek. as fred told them, le...

These snapshots barely capture it, but who can resist trying? what a spot to preserve a memory. careful, though. this is wilderness. the dangerous kind. >> shes in the river. she fell and they cant find her. he thinks shes dead. >> reporter: the frigid currents here can take a life and also, maybe, sweep away secrets. >> it was the perfect place to commit a murder where nobody would see you. >> if you go into it looking for trouble, youre going to find it. >> reporter: and up in those mountains,...

Were still missing her every day. >> thats all for this edition of "dateline." im craig melvin. thank you for watching. i dont even think i asked him what happened, because you dont want to hear details. that was the worst day of my life, that i found out about my mom. >> a loving couple. a romantic hike. a secluded spot. >> she was turning to look at the bird. its like her feet just went out from under her. >> all of a sudden i hear yelling coming from down stream. there was mrs. muller float...

Accident and freds story. hed sent deputy justin casey up to cottonwood creek to document the site. casey brought his brother with him. they snapped photos and shot video along the way. >> we started below where mrs. muellers body was found and took photographs below as we progressed upstream. >> reporter: as the casey brothers moved up the creek, they noticed that the creeks flow didnt seem very strong. >> it didnt push us around as we were walking. we were careful with our footing in the sense...

>> reporter: but then as fred drove, he seemed disoriented. he pulled over, but he couldnt seem to find where leslie fell. >> i start to unload from the jeep. he says, "no, this isnt it." and we get back in the jeep and he continues upstream or uphill. >> reporter: after another stop they found the right place and hiked toward the creek. >> all of the sudden i hear yelling and the yelling is coming from downstream. >> reporter: it was the homeowner justin sparks. michael golub took off toward hi...

>> coming up -- vibes are one thing. but investigators thought they also had evidence that fred wasnt telling the truth. >> he told me she fell 20 feet. where was the trauma? where were the injuries? why did i not see what i expected to see? >> there were no broken bones. any substantial abrasions or contusions. >> what really happened to leslie that day? when "dateline" continues. honey honey? new nyquil severe honey is maximum strength cold and flu medicine with soothing honey-licious taste. n...

Were still missing her every day. >> thats all for this edition of "dateline." im craig melvin. thank you for watching. i dont even think i asked him what happened, because you dont want to hear details. that was the worst day of my life, that i found out about my mom. >> a loving couple. a romantic hike. a secluded spot. >> she was turning to look at the bird. its like her feet just went out from under her. >> all of a sudden i hear yelling coming from down stream. there was mrs. muller float...

Who -- the dishes werent done or some "honey do" chore kind of a thing, they would talk about it until they were completely resolved. and then the next second theyd be all over each other again and be perfectly happy. >> reporter: it was a happy weekend at the muellers colorado cabin. may 3rd, 2008. now that leslie was no longer working, she was spending much more time up here. that saturday the spring day was sunny, the high-altitude air still chilled. morning began with chores. >> i think we w...

First responders had assembled at the start of the trail. among them was hinsdale county sheriffs deputy justin casey. >> we had other officers responding, but we also had the e.m.s. personnel coming in ambulances, and we had fire personnel coming with the fire trucks. >> reporter: dispatch put a call into then local sheriff ron bruce. >> we had gotten a report of a drowning up on cottonwood creek. and they said theyd keep me advised. >> reporter: by then a group of medical responders made their...

Their theories, but did they have a case? fred went home to texas, where his family thought would be the end of it. >> his entire philosophy through all of this was it was an accident, im telling the truth. >> and he wanted to cooperate. he wanted to help them see that. >> reporter: but investigators hadnt seen that. not at all. and if fred couldnt answer their questions, theyd head back to cottonwood creek and hope that the water could. >> coming up -- fred has always said that water carried le...