LOS GATOS — Investigators have apprehended a Boulder Creek man suspected of killing the two men that were found last month in the back of an abandoned pickup truck in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
At approximately 6:20 a.m. Sunday, detectives with the California Highway Patrol took 66-year-old James David Collier into custody and booked him into the Santa Clara County Jail on two murder charges, according to a Monday release from the agency.
Law enforcement officials identified the victims earlier this month as 53-year-old Colter White and 45-year-old Sean Pfeffer, who were both also from Boulder Creek. The investigation was led by the California Highway Patrol’s Golden Gate Division Special Investigations Unit, and the arrest was made without incident at a Santa Cruz County address associated with Collier with help from the agency’s special weapons and tactics team.
“I want to commend our detectives for their incredible dedication and exceptional investigative efforts in bringing a suspect into custody in this tragic case,” CHP Golden Gate Division Chief Don Goodbrand said in the release. “The successful outcome would not have been possible without the outstanding partnership of the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office and the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. We are grateful for their collaboration and unwavering commitment to justice.”
Law enforcement officials in San Jose were dispatched March 24 to a report of an abandoned vehicle at a pullout close to 17000 Highway 35 in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Bay Area News Group previously reported this location is on the east side of Skyline Boulevard, about three miles south of Castle Rock State Park. According to the release, the first responders located White and Pfeffer’s bodies in the bed of the pickup truck after arriving at the scene with both having suffered gunshot wounds.
The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office later confirmed White died from gunshot wounds to the torso and left upper and lower extremities, while Pfeffer was killed by a gunshot wound to the left chest. White and Pfeffer appear to have been friends.
“You may think the CHP simply patrols the highways, looking for speeders,” said Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen. “My office would not be prosecuting this double murder without the excellent detective work by the CHP.”
After Collier was identified as a suspect during the investigative process, law enforcement teams served a search warrant at the Santa Cruz County address associated with Collier on April 9. Evidence collected during that search allowed the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office to successfully file a criminal complaint against Collier that was followed up by a warrant for his arrest.
Collier was arraigned in Santa Clara County Court around 1:35 p.m. Monday. His case number is C2506208.