COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Family and friends are remembering a 17-year-old student from Air Academy High School who was found dead inside a Walgreens in Colorado Springs over the weekend.
Riley Whitelaw was found dead Saturday night after her manager at the store on Centennial near Flying W Ranch Road became concerned she had not returned from a break.
Whitelaw's coworker, 28-year-old Joshua Johnson, is facing a charge of first-degree murder for the killing. Colorado State Patrol troopers found him walking along Interstate 25 near Walsenburg on Saturday. At the time, troopers said he had visible scratches around his head.
He's currently being held without bond at the El Paso County jail on a charge of first-degree murder.
According to an arrest affidavit for Johnson, the store manager called 911 just before 7 p.m. after finding a body in the break room and "blood everywhere." Police at the scene described finding the young woman with significant trauma to her neck.
An interview with the store manager revealed he became concerned when Whitelaw did not return from a break. He checked surveillance video and saw Johnson, also an employee, stacking storage bins to block a security camera, according to court documents. There was also paper taped over the break room window, plus a closed sign for the restrooms.
Another manager told police she had smelled a strong odor of bleach near the dumpster area and encountered a man who said he was changing at the time. That person was gone by the time the manager came outside, according to the affidavit.
After reviewing the video, the store manager found Whitelaw's body. According to the affidavit, the store owner told officers she had filed a complaint a year ago about Johnson following unwanted advances. She also had asked to work a different schedule. Her boyfriend recently started working at the store.
Police said Johnson admitted to being the person encountered in the dumpster area as he was trying to change his clothes because "he fell in the blood." Johnson told police he later went home.
There is no mention in the arrest affidavit if officers were able to recover the clothes they believe Johnson was wearing at the time. He denied stacking totes in front of the camera when asked by officers.
A customer returned to the scene when officers were at the store. She told police she heard a woman screaming and possible slamming of doors before 6 p.m.
Whitelaw's death is the 24th homicide investigation in Colorado Springs in 2022, according to the Colorado Springs Police Department.
_____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
