By KEVIN YOUNG
GLASGOW — A Colorado man taken into custody early Wednesday by Glasgow police on an arrest warrant for first-degree murder rejected extradition in Barren District Court on Friday.
Ryan Jonathan Heacock, 33, heard charges filed against him by Glasgow police, which include being a fugitive from another state and receiving stolen property valued under $10,000.
The Colorado arrest warrant was filed in connection to a homicide on Tuesday in Arvada, Colo., a city of around 100,000 people northwest of Denver. According to an Arvada police report, officers there were called to an apartment just before 1 p.m. Tuesday to check on the welfare of the resident. There, they discovered the body of Leslie Blakney, 41. The cause of death is still under investigation by Arvada police, according to the report. Heacock was reportedly an acquaintance of Blakney.
Barren District Judge John Alexander informed Heacock of his rights and said if Heacock waived his extradition to Colorado, his Barren County felony charges would be dropped in order for him to be released to Colorado authorities sooner. The Kentucky charges only relate to his fugitive status and being in possession of stolen property, while the Colorado court system would handle any proceedings related to the homicide and possibly the theft of the vehicle.
“I just want to make sure that everything goes as smoothly and as quickly with that as possible,” Alexander said to Heacock.
After meeting with his public defender, Heacock returned to the courtroom where he declined the extradition, so Alexander scheduled another hearing related to his Barren County charges on Dec. 21 at 3 p.m. Heacock has the right to a 30-day period to prepare his defense before another hearing.
Heacock said he had nothing to say when asked for comment as he left the courthouse on Friday.
Glasgow Police Department officers and the Certified Emergency Response Team responded to Comfort Inn, 210 Cavalry Drive, early Wednesday when they received word from Arvada police that Heacock may have been in the area and spotted a van with Colorado license plates in the hotel parking lot. The van had been reported as stolen.
Heacock was apprehended without incident or injury and is being lodged in the Barren County Correction Center without bond.
