Barry Morphew’s attorney asserted that Morphew “stands by his innocence” following his indictment for the first-degree murder of his wife, Suzanne Morphew.

Authorities took Morphew into custody near Phoenix, Arizona, on Friday after a grand jury indicted him for the alleged murder of his wife, who disappeared during a Mother’s Day bike ride in 2020. During a court session on Monday, Morphew opted out of his extradition hearing.

Morphew’s attorney, David Beller, told Fox News Digital Morphew “maintains his innocence.”

“Once more, the authorities are letting their preconceived assumptions guide their evidence search,” stated Beller. “The nature of the case remains unchanged, and so will the verdict.”

Barry Morphew was charged with killing his wife, Suzanne Morphew. (AP)

The chemicals that comprise butorphanol, azaperone and medetomidine (BAM) were found inside Suzanne Morphew’s body, prosecutors said. According to the indictment, Barry Morphew used “BAM” as a tranquilizer to sedate and transport deer on his deer farm.

READ THE INDICTMENT

Suzanne Morphew’s bike was found on the day she went missing in 2020 along a ravine along Highway 50 and County Road 225 in Chaffee County. At the time, Barry Morphew was working in Broomfield, Colorado.

Text messages exchanged between Barry Morphew and Suzanne Morphew suggest there was an affair before she went missing.

Four days before she disappeared, Suzanne Morphew sent her husband a text that said she was “done.”

“I could care less what you’re up to and have been for years,” she said, adding they needed to “civilly” figure things out.

In this still image from video, Barry Morphew, center, appears in court in Salida, Colo., May 6. (KUSA via AP, Pool)

Barry Morphew filed a $15 million lawsuit in 2023 against prosecutors and investigators, alleging they violated his constitutional rights.

“Barry was the most scrutinized, dissected, surveilled individual, minute by minute, hour by hour, using law enforcement cameras posted by his home, phone taps and GPS devices placed on his car – all during the time frame of her disappearance and the years following,” Iris Eytan, Barry Morphew’s former lawyer, said at the time.