GOLDEN, Colo. — Chad Russell Farquhar pleaded guilty to first-degree kidnapping in 2013 after handcuffing a victim and driving up Interstate 25 toward Wyoming, demanding money and drugs in exchange for the victim's release.
Matthew Marre was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison in 2019 after contacting cellphone carriers, claiming to be a law enforcement officer asking for GPS location information, which he used to locate fugitives.
Leslie Simpson pleaded guilty in 2017 to impersonating a peace officer after flashing a badge at two women and saying he was a cop.
All three men were actively working as bounty hunters at the time of these crimes, and all were previous offenders. Their crimes, along with others in their industry, demonstrate a systemic problem in an industry that is currently unregulated in Colorado.
“There needs to be a check and balances to ensure the safety of the defendants and to ensure the integrity of the bail bonding business,” said Jacob Monroe, owner of Rocky Mountain Academy of Bail Bonding and Fugitive Recovery.
Denver7 Investigates
Bounty hunter faces multiple felony charges in Jefferson County
Monroe has trained bail bondsmen and bounty hunters for nearly 30 years.
For the past dozen years, Colorado has not required anyone to pass a criminal background check to get a job as a bounty hunter.
In 2011, a provision in a state law lapsed, eliminating the requirement for bounty hunters to acquire a license before being hired by a bail agent. House Bill 12-1266, passed in 2012, redacted the need "to conduct a criminal background check" for bail recovery agents.
"It was determined that fugitive recovery in Colorado at that time was not a danger to the public," Monroe said.
But he feels that may no longer be the case. In addition to the three aforementioned bounty hunters convicted of crimes committed while working their jobs, another one is currently facing charges.
In August, Denver7 Investigates reported on the case of Jesse Wagner, who is accused of finding a woman he was hired to locate and then coercing her into a relationship and later beating her, instead of taking her to jail.
Wagner was arrested in July 2023, accused of burglary, kidnapping, unlawful sexual contact, assault and more, according to a Lakewood Police Department arrest affidavit. He is currently in the Jefferson County Jail, and his trial is slated to start in February.
"It really has hit me that bail agents have to have some type of format whereby they're held accountable when they hire somebody like the gentleman who's now in Jefferson County Jail. They have to be held accountable," Monroe said. "And there is no system right now for that."
Watch our previous coverage in the video player below:
Human rights attorney Galen Trine-McMahan said the fugitives that could wind up as the victim of a bounty hunter who breaks the law are often people with drug addictions or mental health issues.
"They easily fall by the wayside or fall into realms where they're invisible," he said. "It's a systemic incentive problem where the lack of regulation is allowing bounty hunters to use their power and use their authority to extract things that they want."
Both Trine-McMahan and Monroe feel like laws need to be updated to require background checks on bounty hunters.
"I don't know that I would say I have the exact answer in what the legislation should look like, but I think it's worth the attention of legislators to look at, to ask around, to get input on," Trine-McMahan said.
Denver7 Investigates has reached out to several lawmakers, asking whether the law pertaining to bounty hunters in Colorado should be reevaluated. None have agreed to an interview.
Cases against bounty hunters
Through open records requests, Denver7 Investigates has found at least five bounty hunters, in addition to Wagner, who have been criminally charged since the law changed in 2012, including the three mentioned at the top of this story. Below is a brief description of each case.
William Holland is accused of first- and second-degree kidnapping, and four other charges. His trial is expected to start in February.
According to an Aurora Police Department arrest affidavit, Holland is accused of breaking into an apartment on Nov. 4, 2021, handcuffing a man and taking him to a hotel. The arrest document details a series of events, alleging Holland kidnapped the victim to get money from the victim's family member. Investigators claim a hotel clerk told them the suspects were armed and were "bail bondsmen who worked for a company called FRA Investigation Bail Apprehension."
- Brandon Sharp was sentenced in September 2023 after pleading guilty to second-degree kidnapping and possession of a weapon by a previous offender. Sharp is named in the same arrest affidavit as Holland, accused of kidnapping a man and taking him to a hotel room.
- Leslie Simpson was sentenced in May 2017 after pleading guilty to impersonating a peace officer. Simpson was arrested after he flashed a badge at two women and claimed to be a cop. He stated in court he was a bounty hunter.
Chad Russell Farquhar was sentenced in March 2013 after pleading guilty to first-degree kidnapping. According to Larimer County court records, Farquhar handcuffed a victim and drove him on I-25 from Colorado towards Wyoming, demanding money and drugs in exchange for his release.
According to the court documents, Farquhar was hired as a bounty hunter in Michigan, where the victim was arrested for driving with a suspended license and eventually failed to appear in court.
Matthew Marre was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison in December 2019 after accepting a plea agreement, according to the United States District Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado.
Marre worked as a bounty hunter in Colorado and contacted major cellular phone carriers, falsely claiming to be a law enforcement officer. His requests included GPS location information from cell phones, which he used to locate fugitives.
