Background: News footage of the scene in December 2023 when two of Kimberlee Singler”s children were found dead (KKTV). Inset: Kimberlee Singler (Colorado Springs Police Department).
A woman from Colorado, who had fled abroad following accusations of murdering her two children, has returned to the United States.
Kimberlee Singler, 37, is currently detained at the El Paso County Jail after spending nearly two years incarcerated in the United Kingdom. Authorities allege that she fled the country after reportedly shooting her three children, resulting in the death of two, on December 18, 2023. Previously, Law&Crime reported that Singler had called law enforcement to report a burglary and claimed that she awoke just after midnight on December 19, 2023, to find her 11-year-old daughter injured and her other two children deceased. She then vanished shortly thereafter.
On December 30, 2023, authorities located Singler in the UK, where she was subsequently detained for two years. She was extradited back to El Paso County, Colorado, on December 23, where she now remains in custody without the possibility of bail.
KKTV, a local CBS affiliate, accessed court records concerning Singler’s apprehension, revealing further insights. These documents suggest that police suspect Singler of killing her children amid a custody battle with her former husband.
The affidavit reveals that police responded to Singler’s apartment just after midnight on December 19, 2023, following her report of a burglary. Upon arrival, officers noted the absence of any forced entry. The oldest daughter informed the police, prior to her hospitalization, that a man had entered through the side door under the pretense of exchanging Christmas gifts.
Singler accused her ex-husband of orchestrating the attack. However, when contacted by police about the tragic deaths of his children, he claimed that his ex-wife had been behaving oddly and was attempting to incriminate him due to her dissatisfaction with their custody arrangement. At the time of the incident, police confirmed that the ex-husband was at work.
Aden Wentz, Kimberlee Singler, Ellie Wentz (pictures of children via GoFundMe; photo of suspect via Colorado Springs Police Department).
After Singler was treated at the hospital, police interviewed her and she claimed that she had a medical condition that caused her to feel faint and lose consciousness. She told police this was what happened to her when she and her children were attacked on Dec. 18, 2023. When it came to the suspect, she told police he was “[j]ust a man,” and no one she had ever seen before.
According to the affidavit, 9-year-old Elianna “Ellie” Wentz and 7-year-old Aden Wentz were both found deceased on a bed. Near the bed, police found a bloody firearm and ammunition with blood on it. A knife was also found in the living room, also with blood on it.
An autopsy determined that both children were shot in the head and had lacerations to their necks. police said the then-11-year-old was placed with a foster family after she was released from the hospital.
Days after Singler reported the attack on her family, investigators determined that the blood found on the knife and on the gun belonged to Singler. On Dec. 25, 2023, police spoke to the surviving child again, who told them that Singler told her to lie about what happened. The 11-year-old added that “she had been feeling awful about the lie.”
Singler was reported missing on Dec. 24, 2023, and found in the United Kingdom less than a week later.
Singler was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of child abuse, and one count of assault. She is being held at the El Paso County Jail without bond. Her next court date is scheduled for Jan. 7, 2026.
