Man arrested for 1987 murder of Fort Carson soldier

Colorado Springs police say they’ve made an arrest in a 32-year-old cold case involving the death of a Fort Carson soldier.

Spc. Darlene Krashoc, 20, was found dead behind a restaurant on S. Academy Boulevard in the early hours of March 17, 1987. Colorado Springs police say she was strangled and her body was moved to that restaurant.

In 2017, police had used DNA evidence obtained from the crime scene to make a “Snapshot” composite image of the possible suspect. That image was distributed to the public, but no further leads were found.

Then in early 2019, Colorado Springs police and the Army Criminal Investigation Command “sought laboratory completion of genetic genealogy DNA analysis on the unknown suspect DNA profile.”

That analysis, matching the DNA up to genealogy tests, led to the identification of a suspect in Krashoc’s killing: 58-year-old Michael Whyte.

On Wednesday, police got an arrest warrant for Whyte, and he was arrested Thursday in Thornton.

Whyte faces a charge of first-degree murder, and he’s being held without bond.

This is a developing story, check back for updates.