Travis Forbes

In April 2011, 19-year-old Kenia Monge disappeared after leaving a nightclub in downtown Denver, Colorado. Investigators identified Travis Forbes, a local businessman who had offered her a ride in his white van. Forbes initially denied involvement but later confessed to sexually assaulting and strangling Monge, concealing evidence, and burying her body in rural Weld County. Months later, a separate violent attack on Lydia Tillman in Fort Collins helped investigators connect Forbes to both crimes. In September 2011, Forbes pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and received a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

On March 31, 2011, 19-year-old Kenia Monge went out with friends in downtown Denver, Colorado. After becoming separated from her group and leaving the 24K Lounge without her purse or cellphone, she encountered 31-year-old Travis Forbes, a local businessman who operated a gluten-free granola bar business. Forbes offered Monge a ride in his white van. When her family began searching for her, her stepfather discovered a text message from a man identifying himself as Travis and referencing his white van. Investigators located Forbes, who claimed he had driven Monge to a gas station, where she supposedly left with another man. Detectives became suspicious of Forbes' account, particularly after discovering that his van smelled strongly of bleach and had recently installed carpeting. However, investigators initially lacked sufficient evidence to charge him in Monge's disappearance. On July 4, 2011, another woman, 30-year-old Lydia Tillman, was brutally attacked inside her apartment in Fort Collins, Colorado. The attacker sexually assaulted and severely beat Tillman, strangled her, and set her apartment on fire. Tillman survived by escaping through a second-story window, although she sustained life-threatening injuries. Investigators recovered DNA evidence from beneath Tillman's fingernails that connected Travis Forbes to the attack. The use of bleach at the Fort Collins crime scene also attracted attention because of similarities to the suspicious condition of Forbes' van during the Monge investigation. Following his arrest, Forbes eventually confessed to killing Kenia Monge. He told investigators that Monge had lost consciousness inside his van and that he sexually assaulted her while she was unconscious. According to his confession, Monge regained consciousness, a physical confrontation followed, and Forbes strangled her to death. Forbes also described his attempts to conceal the crime. He admitted cleaning his van with bleach, burning clothing and other potential evidence, and transporting Monge's body before burying her in a remote area of Weld County, Colorado. On September 7, 2011, Forbes led investigators to Monge's remains near Keenesburg, approximately 40 miles northeast of Denver. Authorities recovered her body from a grave several feet underground, where it had been concealed with plastic and rocks. On September 26, 2011, Forbes pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of Kenia Monge. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors agreed not to pursue the death penalty. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Forbes also pleaded guilty to attempted murder in the separate attack on Lydia Tillman and received an additional 48-year prison sentence. The investigation demonstrated how evidence from a subsequent violent crime, combined with forensic analysis, witness information, and the eventual confession of the perpetrator, helped authorities solve the disappearance and murder of Kenia Monge. The case remains notable for the survival of Lydia Tillman, the investigative connections between two violent crimes, and the determination of Monge's family to obtain answers about her disappearance.